Pan Am Murdoch: The Lost Episode
by RuthieGreen
Summary: 1901: What happens after Loch Ness Murdoch (S7:E7) to Julia and William's relationship? Seems like it should have been going places but stalled again!. More history and romance with a little mystery on the side, set in Buffalo. What would it be like for Julia to return? Read and review! I will respond! Thank you to Maureen and the show writers for great characters
1. Chapter 1

Pan-Am Murdoch

 **Author's notes:**

 **1) You just gotta know William Murdoch could not have brought himself to bypass the 1901 Pan American Exposition in Buffalo, as the whole center-piece of the Pan Am was all about electricity & electrical inventions etc. **

**2) There was a drastic and unexplained shift in the relationship (again!) after the Loch Ness episode: things heat up and then rapidly dissipate, so why? This story, the "Lost Episode," is my answer to that as well as his true motivation for why he threw himself off the bridge after Gillies.**

 **3) Thank you to my beta-reader, "Dutch," who suggested the Pan Am as an episode venue and then convinced me length in service of the story is not so bad, and made the story better with comments and suggestions.**

 **4) Please read and review as only a little encouragement keeps me going!**

 **Chapter 1**

 **Friday 6/28/1901**

"Murdoch—get in here!" Inspector Thomas Brackenreid bellowed across the bull pen over to his detective's open door. He slammed the earpiece of the telephone down in disgust, and heard the clattering of Murdoch's Oliver Standard Writer abruptly cease.

Detective William Murdoch, shirt-sleeves still rolled up, walked into the office to stand in front of his superior's desk.

"Yes, sir?" he inquired suspiciously. It was never a good sign when the phone rang and afterwards he was summoned into Brackenreid's office, and told to close the door behind him.

"Someone's requested your presence, Detective, someone high up who won't even tell me why or what for. So I wonder. What the deuce you have been up to now?" Brackenreid's chair creaked as he rose.

"Sir? What are you talking about?" William asked, buying time to figure out if there was something he could be in trouble for, but came up empty.

"You have been summoned, me ole' mucker, to this address. Very hush-hush. You are to pack up your murder kit, this list of items, and tell no one where you are going or even that you have gone." He made a face, his skin getting redder by the second. "And _I_ must be your bloody secretary! I suggest you pack up your spare shirt and shoes as well since you will not have time to go home to change." The inspector handed William a piece of paper. "You are to leave your badge, wallet and watch here; take nothing that identifies you."

"Sir, this is impossible, outrageous," William bristled, hoping that by appealing to the inspector he could forestall this. "What about my cases? What about telling…." _What about telling Julia so she does not think I have disappeared on her again._

"That has apparently been taken care of too. I am to tell people you have been summoned to Winnipeg and will be back in two weeks." Brackenreid put his hands in his pockets and leaned forward, boring into the other man's face. "What the bloody hell is going on?"

"I have no idea…Two weeks! But sir, my arrangements for the Pan American Exhibition next week. Everything is paid for…."

"Not up to me. You have either pissed on someone's parade and this is punishment or someone thinks you are the answer to a problem they have." The inspector checked his watch, the chain swinging. "You better leave now, because you have to be there by 5:15. I suggest a cab…"

William patted his pockets and looked pained. "Um, sir, I don't have…."

"Bloody hell, so now you are taking my money too?" He fished into petty cash and drew out most of it to hand to the detective. He accepted Murdoch's personal effects in return, promising them safekeeping. "I will need a receipt for the money. Now, get out of here. Go!" Brackenreid stared at the other man, willing him to leave. _Stunts like this get people hurt,_ thought the inspector. _I hope someone knows what they are doing._

The detective dithered for another moment and then stalked off to his office, reviewing the list of required items. He tidied his desk a bit, and put notes on files for Constable Crabtree, since he will have to take over abruptly. He went to a set of drawers, grabbed his spare shaving kit, fresh clothing and boots, and jammed them into a duffel, before putting his sleeves down, cufflinks in, and his suit jacket back on. He added items to his equipment case as he checked them off the list and closed it. Finding his hat, he left the station, counting out the money the inspector gave him, hoping it was enough for whatever was required. He sent a prayer that Julia would be understanding, but for himself he was livid. He had made elaborate plans to propose to her during the Pan American and those plans were now officially shredded.

 _Damn,_ he cursed, and did not even feel guilty for the blasphemy.

########

Julia was fuming. Inspector Brackenreid telephoned her just before she was getting ready to leave work, to tell her that the trip William had planned for them in Buffalo next week was cancelled, as the detective was being packed off to Winnipeg, of all places. Something about a connection to a series of murders.

 _I would have preferred if William would have spoken with me directly._ He had been going on and on about the Pan American Exhibition for months and specifically the Miracle of Electricity exhibit for weeks, with tickets to view the power stations in Niagara Falls on both sides of the border too. _That man is obsessed with electricity and electrical gadgets,_ she thought _._ _He will be so disappointed._

Going with William was supposed to be a break from James Gillies' appeal as it dragged on. The legal process, the best his family money could buy, would only postpone the inevitable, but when she thought about it too closely she could barely draw breath. Until he was finally hanged, Julia felt she was in suspended animation, unable to move forward. William calling off the trip meant she was suddenly with time off and no plans and no diversion, unless she wanted to go to the Exhibition by herself. She certainly had no appetite for social calls while in Buffalo. She _was_ interested in the medical exhibits, the x-ray machine and the infant incubators, and she reasoned that in a crowd as large as the Pan Am Exhibition, no one would know or care that she was a notorious widow. Unfortunately, William had all the tickets and arrangements in his possession, and for some apparent reason did not leave them for her. She wondered at the expense and if he got his money back for cancelling.

 _Or I can give in and call Ruby._ Her sister had been in Buffalo for weeks visiting friends and completing a series of writing assignments. _If I call her, maybe she will take in some of the sights with me._ Julia considered the pros and cons and decided it would be fun to have more time with her sister, and conversely, she could finally fulfill a long-awaited and painful promise to herself. _Now where did I put that number?_

Julia put the call through and was pleased that her sister rang back almost immediately. "Julia, is that you? Our connection is terrible… are you still in Toronto?" Julia could barely make out her sister's voice on the long distance call.

"Yes, Ruby. My plans have changed. William and I can't come to Buffalo next week, but I wondered if I can visit with you instead."

"Oh, Jules, I am so sorry about your trip. But, yes, please do come. How long can you stay?" Ruby inquired.

"A few days it least. I am sorry this is so last minute, but William has been sent out of town and I thought this way I could spend more time with you."

Ruby answered: "That will be splendid. Don't wait until Monday, as I have tomorrow and Sunday free. Why don't you take the night train and I will meet you in the morning? You can even stay with me. My host and hostess are dear people, and I am sure they won't mind—there are two beds in my room. Do come. And bring your party clothes. You won't recognize Buffalo- I'm sure you will be delighted. Will you come tonight?"

Her doldrums perked up a bit at Ruby's enthusiastic staccato delivery and Julia decided it would be a relief to be spontaneous. "Yes, I will come assuming I can get a train ticket. I will call if I cannot, but otherwise I will see you in the morning."

"I will make all the other arrangements. The train arrives at 8:00 am – look for me at the station. Oh, Jules, this will be so much fun! We can spend two days exploring the exhibits and I can be your guide. I am so happy you called. See you tomorrow."

"See you in the morning," said Julia as she rang off with a satisfied smile. She picked up the telephone again and called the train station, securing passage for the night train and looked at the clock on her desk. Since most of her packing was already prepared she just needed to throw in a few last minute things and arrange her carriage. She could sleep on the train, just like she used to do between Toronto and Montreal while she was at school. _Seeing Ruby is just what the doctor ordered!_

########

William's hansom brought him to Toronto's rail hub, by a warehouse that appeared to be closed and locked. He surveyed the perimeter, found nothing of significance and tried to consult his non-existent watch. Frustrated, he spied a local clock tower whose hands read 5:15. It occurred to him that this may be a bad joke or an attempt at misdirection, and he became, by turns, worried and very annoyed. On his second circuit of the building a boy approached him, asking for "the frog." William assumed that meant him and took the boy's note. The lad hung around, hoping for a tip which William tossed (from Brackenreid's money), and the boy caught the coin neatly before fleeing.

The note told him to get onto boxcar number GW4386. William looked down the lines of cars, and saw that several trains were moving. He hoped that the delay in receiving the note didn't mean that the car he was supposed to be on had left, when out of the corner of his eye he found the proper car, and noted it was starting to move. He darted to the track, shoved his luggage into the opening and hoisted himself while the train was creeping slowly. The car was loaded with crates and boxes, all stamped "Dominion of Canada" and out of curiosity he started inspecting them. Suddenly the door slammed shut, and he heard what sounded like a lock snicking closed through the hasp. Hauling on the door, pounding and shouting did nothing helpful, so he found a box to sit on and settled in _._

 _If I am being kidnapped, I walked right into it._ He already smelled a certain rat behind these machinations and wondered where this case (and he) were heading.

# # #

William slept fitfully in the boxcar, his only comfort was imagining Julia wrapping her arms around him and saying "Yes!" to his marriage proposal. _When I ever get to make it_! he grumbled to himself as he drifted off. He woke when he thought it was probably after midnight, missing his watch again for confirmation. It troubled him more than a little that he had no identification. _Well, my finger marks are on file just in case,_ he thought rather morbidly. He heard the change in the rhythm of the tracks as the train slowed, sounding like it was going over a long trestle bridge. The brakes sung and slowed the train even further before his car stopped, was uncoupled and shunted to a siding. Given his estimate of the time and relative speed of the train, a quick formula told him there was only one place he could be— over the International Railroad Bridge into Buffalo New York.

 _Well, it looks like I am coming to the Pan American Exposition after all._ He rolled his eyes in frustration _. Couldn't we have done this a different way?_ e expected

The door opened much later, on an angry, impatient detective. He had gotten a sliver of wood in his leg from the crate he sat on, making a hole in the trousers of his dark brown suit that he hoped his tailor could repair. Lights from the Pan American penetrated the darkness. He had heard the illuminated Electric Tower could be seen for 20 miles, and by what he saw from his location by the Niagara River, he was sure that was accurate.

A man stood there, wordlessly motioning to William to get out, and pointed to a waiting carriage. The area was otherwise deserted. _The breeze is at least welcoming,_ he observed. Since he did not know how long this next leg of the journey was going to be, he first found an outhouse and used it gratefully. William's luggage and several boxes were taken off the train car and loaded into the carriage with him. The driver never even asked "Where to, sir?", and treated this as if it was an everyday occurrence, and for all William knew, to the driver it might be. Before getting onto his perch, the driver gave him a lantern, and curtly told him to open the top box, and follow instructions.

William decided to go along with all of this for no other reason than his interest was piqued, while finding the whole thing more than a little ridiculous. He was once again in a closed space, as the carriage was heavily curtained. In the box was a set of men's business clothing: trousers, vest, shirt, coat, cravat, and a large hat; gloves, glasses and watch were provided also. At the bottom was a set of theatrical whiskers and adhesive.

 _Fascinating._ _How am I supposed to put this on in a rolling carriage with no mirror and poor light?_ He almost refused to continue, as he was tired and cross.

The streets were smooth enough and the carriage was well-sprung, so that changing his clothes and applying the facial hair was not completely impossible in the cramped space. He hoped the mutton chops, mustache and beard were even-enough for the darkness outside, especially since he needed his own shave too. He would have liked to have experienced more of the night air and view the city rather than being cooped up behind the curtains.

He calculated he was traveling south for some distance, therefore towards the city center. He could hear snatches of music and noises of people on the street. The carriage eventually made two sharp lefts relatively close together, and stopped.

 _Now what?_ he wondered, so he opened the door, looked around and got out. The breeze had died down and the air was calm and warm. His destination proved to be a three story gabled Italianate brick home with a deep porch. It appeared to have been converted into a library of some kind as he could make out a sign that said "Reading Room." Strangely, lights were showing in several windows even at this late hour. Across the street, beautifully dressed men and women laughed as they streamed out of a courtyard after what must have been a grand dance or ball, into a line of waiting conveyances.

A large, elegantly-uniformed gentleman appeared by the carriage. The man said, rather loudly, "Good to have you home, sir. I hope your trip was satisfactory," as if he had expected William, and reached to take his case and duffel from him. William reluctantly surrendered them. The driver said he would bring the boxes to the rear and left before William could pay him. _It seems he was already remunerated. Fine, I need the money,_ he groused.

Shrugging the knots out of his back and neck, he settled his hat and walked behind the servant up the porch steps and in through carved oak and glass coffin-doors, as if he knew what he was doing. _Brackenreid would be much more comfortable playing this role, whatever it is. And I'm dressed just like him….Well_ , _in for a penny…_

He entered a tiled and muraled reception room. A dark-haired women approached him with a rustle of fabric, from behind and to his left, through an opening in the double doors to the adjoining room. "Good evening. Please come into the parlour, you must be tired." She paused, examined his face closely, dropped her smile and replaced it with a shocked look.

She said, " _William_ _?_ What in Heaven?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Ettie? Ettie Weston!What are you doing here! I thought you were in Winnipeg?" He took in her orange striped silk gown, cut in what looked like a daring style, and her dark hair piled on her head in swirls. Her warm brown eyes shone and she smiled broadly at him. William stepped towards her and removed his hat. The last time he saw Ettie Weston, was more than 4 years ago during the investigation into a murder of one of her girls. He took her hand and kissed it, and she responded by planting a kiss of her own on his cheek. They looked at each other, and shared a wry grin.

"I had no idea it would be you, William. Terry is having a little fun with both of us I think."

"Ettie, why am I here, and apparently pretending to be someone else in these clothes?" He then checked himself and stiffened. " _Terry?_ Terrence Meyers?... I knew it…What in Heaven's Name… " William thought ( _more to the point)_ "You call him Terry?" He allowed his bewilderment and anger to show.

"You mean you don't know what this is about?" Ettie was taken aback, and looked around to see if someone overheard them as he started to protest again. "William, hush!" She put her hand on him to calm him. "You are here on important business that we need to discuss privately. I have a room for you and some food and something to drink waiting. You can have a wash-up too if you like." When William objected, Ettie overruled him. "I still have some customers, and I was told it is important you are not seen tonight— _At least until your disguise is in better condition_ ," she said in _sotto voce_. "Please. I will come see you soon. Mr Jackson? Will you show him to my room?"

William was getting angrier by the second, but decided it was not Ettie's fault, and that food, water and a wash were a good idea. He straightened himself, pursed his lips and allowed himself to be guided to a sumptuous room with a bay window on the second floor, in the front of the house. As promised, there was a tray with bread and cheese, fruit, a carafe of water and bottle of whiskey. He shed his glasses and gloves, and headed straight for the water and drained it, then attacked the rest of the food. While exploring the room he looked carefully in the mirror and was a little shocked by what he saw—because it was not himself that looked back from the mirror surface, but an old-fashioned version of who he could have been, frock coat and all. Buried under all that with a hat and glasses on he thought he would be unrecognizable. _Except, Ettie knew me nearly right away! How did she do that?_ The whiskers itched, so he set about removing them with something he found on the dressing table.

All the while he was doing this he catalogued the evils he would visit on Terrence Meyers for disrupting his engagement plans, and dragging him to a brothel in a foreign country in the middle of the night. _The explanation for this better be good…_

# # #

Ettie found William asleep in her Morris chair by the open window. Earlier, she had felt her anxiety drop considerably when she discovered it was William Murdoch, of all people, that had been sent to her. _I always did feel safe and comfortable around him._

He was snoring softly, clothes in some disarray. Even so, she considered his well-proportioned form, high forehead and lightly tanned skin, generous brows and lashes… Noticed a softening of the planes of his face with age, small lines collecting in the corners of his eyes, the curve of his mouth. _William, if only_ ….and was wistful for a moment about what could have been between them.

She sighed. _He was never less than a gentleman. And always honest with me—probably his most attractive quality._ In all her adult years, Ettie knew better than to give her heart away, but this copper had been her first (and only) real temptation.

 _Well, back to business,_ she told herself. The last of the customers was firmly escorted out by Mr Jackson and her girls were in the kitchen, eating before retiring. She hesitated in waking him but there was nothing for it: there was too much riding on this.

"William?" she shook his arm.

He startled and sat up abruptly. Scrubbing his eyes with his hand he smiled at her, abashed that she caught him sleeping. "Ettie, Miss Weston—please, what is going on? Why are you here? Why am I here? What has Meyers gotten me in to?" His questions ceased when she held up her hand.

"William, it's 'Ettie', and there is no way to make this any simpler. I am here in Buffalo because it is a lucrative city to be in, in my line of work. I have been open for business since March. Many enterprising Buffalonians have rented out their houses for the Exposition, so I rented this place," she gestured around her, "and no, the owner has no idea, but he liked the price I offered. You are here because the man you are replacing, Peter Lenox, is … _was_ _,_ a Canadian agent who said he discovered a conspiracy to disrupt the Exposition. He died suddenly, unexpectedly, and tomorrow was supposed to meet with a contact who would tell him more about the threat. It was decided that the information is so important that nothing can disrupt this meeting tomorrow," she checked the mantel clock, "well, today of course."

"All right, but why me and why the subterfuge?" His brows came together in confusion.

"I guess you fit the bill, William. Terry needs someone he can trust, who can speak and read French, can examine the evidence Peter collected, make sense out of it, and take this meeting later today. The urgency is that the threatened disruption to the Exposition could be anything: a protest, assassination attempt, or even a bomb, is scheduled to occur Monday, specifically on Canada Day, July 1st." Ettie saw he was not convinced. "As for why you, I suppose Terry knows I knew you, you have the skills and, you also fit Peter's general description and, er…clothes."

William had a nasty thought. "Ettie, these are his clothes? Did he by any chance, die in these clothes?" When she would not look at him, he decided he guessed right and felt a little queasy. "Ettie, tell me exactly what happened."

"Peter left here early Friday morning. His story was that he was going on a short business trip to look at rare books—he has been running the Reading Room library here in the house as his cover story. He was really going to the train station to pick up a diplomatic pouch and work on his investigative leads. But by the time he got to the train yard, he was dead in the carriage." William motioned her on to continue, so she took the seat opposite him, feeling sad again for the dead agent.

"Mr Healy, the driver, discovered his body, called me, and I called Terry. It was decided to put Peter's body on the return train in a diplomatic car so no one would be the wiser, and I suppose at that point an alternative plan was hatched." Ettie turned her gaze at William and leaned in with a pleased look on her face. "Really, they must have worked fast because here you are!"

He decided not to tell her of his ignominious recruitment. "How did he die?" He thought that was a reasonable question.

"I have no idea. Nothing obvious like a bullet or knife or strangulation. I guess the cause of death is being worked on too." That part worried her, particularly now that it was William taking his place.

"I can't believe that I was the only or best choice. I do not know anything about this kind of espionage." The last time he did Terence Meyer's bidding in a case anything like this, was about solving Mr Dolomer's murder and a supposed Prussian spy. "And how can I pull off a meeting? " He was frowning hard again, thinking through the implications of why Meyers chose him.

"According to Peter, the contact had never met him face to face before—so who is to know? You just have to pretend you are Peter Lenox for a few days, and report your findings to Terry. He will take care of the rest."

William found he was quite irritated with Ettie speaking of Meyers on a diminutive first–name basis. "Ettie, what is your, er … relationship with Terrence Meyers?"

Ettie made a coquettish pose. "Why, William, you can't be jealous." She had read the papers and knew about the scandal the "Catholic Detective & Mrs Garland" (as they were styled in the Buffalo papers) had been embroiled in, as well as her wrongful conviction and brush with execution. "Aren't you married by now?"

 _Ouch._ "No, she and I, er... Dr Ogden and I have not set a date," he said unhappily. He did not reveal to Ettie that for many months, Julia had been taking the lead in defining their relationship. They had gone from barely speaking after she was exonerated and freed from jail, to colleagues, then to "very good friends" and nothing more (per her description to Minerva Fairchild and James Pendrick a couple months ago) to now (hopefully) his willing bride.

"Well, Terry and I have an … arrangement. " She looked meaningfully at William, and let him come to his own conclusions, hoping he was a little jealous. "I did go to Winnipeg, but it was not quite what I wanted, so I moved around for a while. I still have connections in Toronto. I met Terry through, shall we say, mutual friends. It turns out I have a flare for intrigue. "

William could well believe that. He thought Ettie was quite remarkable: a shrewd head for business, clever and she had an accurate read on most men. _Including me_ , he remembered.

"Even an old tart such as myself can be a patriot, William. Terry suggested I set up here in Buffalo and the arrangement was I would take Peter on as the librarian for the reading room—a legitimate one by the way. I have many first editions. My establishment is a convenient way for men to make contacts in utmost discretion. And he would have a base of operations for his investigations." Ettie said this as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Mr Jackson and Mr Healy, also work for Terry or at least work on behalf of the Canadian government."

William thought there was more, but he was focused on the present problem. "What time is this meeting? It will be dawn soon and I need to get oriented." He did not trust Meyers in the least and was surprised Ettie did. _But I do trust Ettie._

"I am not sure, but Peter told me he had a ticket for the Scottish Games tomorrow at 1:00 pm and that he would be meeting the contact there."

"So, I go, hope for this man to tell me something and then follow the trail?" he asked skeptically.

"Essentially, yes. But Peter has entire boxes full of files and the evidence he has gathered. Terry wants you to examine it and prepare a report." Ettie looked at the clock again, then reached over and dragged a finger suggestively down his arm. "You are going to stay with me tonight, William, and we will get you fixed up in the morning."

He shook his head but grinned, for the first time finding some humor in the situation, and gathered the old comfortable rapport between them again. "Ettie, my dear, don't you ever stop?"

Ettie gave him her most dazzling smile. "A girl has to try…. Peter slept in the dressing room attached to this bedroom. I will set you up with a work space tomorrow when it gets light. So, off with you, I need my beauty sleep."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

 **Saturday 6/29/1901**

William was used to waking at 6:00 am every morning and despite not getting to sleep until three, he was up at his accustomed hour. He had slept soundly, for once not dreaming of Julia, and the sun was already shining. He found the bathroom, ran a hot bath and gave himself a shave, locking the door so he could have privacy. That was a good thing, because Ettie was soon at the door trying to get in.

"William, it's too early," she complained through the door.

He opened it to find Ettie in a bright satin wrapper, looking sleepy. "Ettie, good morning." He smiled at her, refusing to be embarrassed by her dishabille, but his charm seemed lost on her this early in her day. He cleared his throat. "Right then. If I am to figure this out I need to get ready. Just point me to an area I can work on Mr Lenox's findings."

Ettie surveyed William, wearing a collarless shirt that had been Peter's. "You are Mr Peter Lenox now, so we both need to get used to that. And you are going to have to get dressed better for the part. So, _Peter_ , what kind of space do you need?" She accompanied him to the dressing room to help him locate what he needed to examine.

"All I need is some place quiet, with good light where I will not be disturbed." He hefted the box of files. "I won't have to get into the whole costume until I leave the house, correct? No one is awake, there are no customers until, what 4:00 pm?"

"Upstairs, above my room is some currently unused space. You are welcome to that. Those boxes over there were also Peter's, and you can look in the desk. He did his work on it. He also has things in the Reading Room downstairs, so look there also." Ettie checked the time. "I suppose you should investigate his closet and his clothes, but it looks like you already did that. When you're done you can find yourself some breakfast too—the kitchen is in the back. Mr Jackson and Mr Healy have separate rooms over the carriage house across the alley in back, but no one stirs here until at least eleven. I will see you then." She turned to go but he stopped her.

"Ettie, you knew Mr Lenox, as did Mr Jackson and Mr Healy. Don't you have any idea what he was up to or what he found? It would help to know where to start." 

"He did not discuss any of it with us, only with Terry. Peter would ask for material and supplies, money, send and receive packages, packets from the train. He took trips, went about town, received visitors in the Reading Room…honestly he was cryptic. I am not sure he trusted me. " She gave him a gesture as if to convey, _'Imagine that?_ _He_ _did not trust_ _me_ _.'_

"I am going to want to interview Mr Jackson and Mr Healy later. Are there any other instructions from Meyers?"

"Yes. To hurry. He will get in touch with you."

William bade her sweet dreams and went about carting his luggage, equipment and the boxes upstairs. The "Reading Room" on the first floor was just that—and he noted with appreciation the quality and quantity of books, mostly literature, but some scientific works also, including the most recent Scientific American and National Geographic he had not yet read. There was a guest register and papers in a desk; he took those too. The kitchen yielded coffee, which he left alone, and biscuits which came upstairs with him. In the attic space, he set the table up as a desk, and started looking at each piece of information, searching for the conspiracy and hoping he was up to the job.

########

Saturday, at precisely 8:00 am sharp, Julia's train stopped in Buffalo and disembarkation commenced. The day was quite beautiful, and while sunny, was several degrees cooler than Toronto. Julia knew that was a function of the breeze off Lake Erie, and that the same weather patterns also occasionally produced deep winter snows. _Those_ she did not miss. Around her were scores of people from north of the border who had the same idea as she did and planned to spend the whole day at the Exhibition. Many of them would reverse their passage and go back on the train late tonight, or later on Sunday.

She grabbed her hat box and bag and wound her way off the train, searching for Ruby. At

5' 9", and two inches taller with her walking-shoe heels, Julia towered over many of the other passengers on the platform, not even counting her straw hat. Her sister was the size of an average woman at 5' 3" so it was possible Ruby was there but lost behind the crowd. She gave the porter her luggage tickets, got her other possessions and was about to ask directions to the street when she spotted Ruby rushing towards her.

"Jules! Jules! Over here!" Ruby nearly collided with a steamer trunk in her haste, plume on her hat bobbing. She reached Julia and launched herself into a big hug. "I am so glad you came. Have you had breakfast? No? Well, come with me. I have a carriage waiting." Ruby pulled her sister along, not even waiting for an answer, chattering on about the plans she made for the two of them.

Julia slept well on the train and was refreshed, but was feeling daunted already by Ruby's list. "Ruby, slow down. I just got here!" Ruby did so, turning her bright blue eyes and laughing face on her sister. "Don't be a stick in the mud already, Jules. There is so much to see and do and this is the best weather we have had—not too hot and a nice breeze. You should have seen the rain and mud before, then the heat!" They made their way to the street and a carriage driver detached himself from his rig, pulled down the step and opened the door, assisting both ladies into the open seating. "Thank you, Francis. This is my sister, Dr Julia Ogden."

He flashed a smile, tipped his hat and then worked the luggage onto the back of the carriage. "Where to, Miss Ruby?"

"Back to the house I think, but we will be leaving again soon enough." Ruby reached over and patted Julia's hand. "You are going to see so many surprising things while you are here, I cannot wait to show you."

Once out of the congestion close to the station, Ruby started a lively narration of her surroundings. Julia notice some things were indeed different than when she lived here just a couple years ago. For one thing, the Exhibition brought in additional crowds of people to what was a cosmopolitan destination and already the tenth-largest city in the States. More people would pass through Buffalo immigrating to the west than came through Ellis Island. There were new hotels and restaurants, and the overall sense was that the place was rich and bursting with energy. She was retracing some memories in her mind when Ruby's dialogue brought her back. "….And so I got a firsthand story from the policemen down on Canal Street by following them for five nights as they did their rounds, dressed as I was as a cart-lad…."

"Ruby! You went where and did _what_?" Julia was appalled. The canal district, where the Erie Canal joined the Great Lakes in Buffalo, was probably the most notorious and dangerous place possible for _anyone_ to be in, let alone a small, young woman. It literally had a world-wide reputation among seamen as a cesspool of evil and vice.

"Jules, it was perfectly safe. I was with the police the whole time and I got three published articles out of it!" She decided she would not tell her sister the whole story if she was going react so strongly to just mentioning being there in the "Infected District." She certainly would not admit a cart-lad helped drag the daily quota of corpses from the canal-side district to the morgue. How else was I going to get a firsthand account? _Really,_ Ruby thought, _Julia is still so sheltered after all that time working in the coroner's office and the Asylum._

Julia scowled briefly. _Honestly,_ she was astonished at her sister. _Ruby is still so naïve and reckless, one would think she'd have learned better by now, considering all the travel she has done._ Julia was reconsidering her impulse to come. _And we are already disagreeing, in record time…._

They were saved from further discussion by arriving at their destination, an imposing brick home, nestled prominently on a corner lot with a huge slate mansard roof, and carriage house in the rear. Ruby's hostess greeted them from the top of the steps where she was enjoying the morning air.

Julia thought it would have been preferable to be swallowed up by a crater, because she recognized her hostess.

Her thoughts tumbled in her mind _. What was I thinking? How could I be so stupid!? Why did I not ask Ruby who the hostess would be?_ _Miss Love_ _, of all people!_ Julia felt her face flush and she could only look down to avoid the other woman's eyes. _She and I were acquainted and she will certainly know me and be aware of the particulars of Darcy's death and…._

"Dr Ogden, welcome to my home. We are so glad Ruby was able to invite you down." Miss Maria Maltby Love, one of the most venerable and important citizens in the whole county, white-haired, patrician and vigorous at about age 60, was smiling and waving her up the steps onto the landing. "Please come have some breakfast before your sister drags you to the Exhibition." Miss Love was clearly signaling that she was going to be held in positive esteem, at least in this household. _Many surprises indeed!_

Julia had faced down many difficult situations in her tenure as coroner, and could quell her own anxiety if she needed to. "Miss Love, thank you so much for your hospitality. I hope my presence here will not discommode you." Julia found her voice to be steady after all, and shook her hand in greeting, hoping to convey the many meanings she intended.

The older woman understood perfectly. "Nonsense. Your work with children and the poor while you were here in Buffalo is well-regarded, and Ruby is so refreshing I could never deny her a visit with her sister. What happened to Dr Garland, and to you, was a tragedy and we never need to revisit it. Please consider my home as yours while you are in the city."

Julia experienced gratitude to her and to Ruby for finding her a haven. Until this moment she was not aware of how much trepidation she carried with her across the border. _Miss Love's imprimatur should go some way in keeping pointed comments from at least being spoken to my face,_ Julia hoped.Ruby gave her hand a squeeze and the three of them went in and sat down to toast and tea.

Over breakfast, Ruby filled Julia in on her most recent news and magazine stories. Several papers ran daily or weekly updates on the Exhibition for which Ruby provided content. Ruby also did interviews and profiles of some of the important dignitaries and attendees for magazines. Those carried her own name as the byline—the more sensational ones were filed under various pseudonyms.

"Ruby's real work here has been investigating the conditions under which working men and women have to survive," Miss Love added. "She is also going to write a story on the Fitch Crèche, which is a day-nursery for children I founded, to keep the little ones safe and healthy while their mothers earn a living. I hope the story will inspire other cities to do the same." She consulted the watch pinned to her severely cut blue dress. "If you will excuse me ladies, I have a meeting I must prepare for. I wish you good day and Dr Ogden, do enjoy the Pan American."

Afterwards, Ruby brought her sister up to a large, bright room on the second floor, where Julia's belongings had already been delivered. "We should leave soon." Ruby said as she eyed her sister's outfit. "It can get very hot, you know. Are you sure you want to wear that?"

Julia frowned. "What is wrong with this dress?" It was one of her favorite summer walking outfits, a light green print with a shorter, ruffled hem.

"It is not the dress, it is the corset and the rest of the undergarments."

"Ruby! I will not go about immodestly dressed." _Well, except for that time at the beach, but Ruby does not need to know that_ … "And besides, the dress will not fit properly." Julia looked closely at Ruby's own rose-colored suit however, and thought it looked very stylish and comfortable.

"Here. At least try these. They are a new idea and quite agreeable. I am wearing a pair myself."

Julia accepted the garment. It was a set of bloomers but with much less fabric and did not come all the way down to the knees. They were silk, loose, very light weight and still covered what need covering. Feeling bold, Julia needed no further persuasion and decided Ruby had a point. _They feel rather freeing actually_ , she thought, when she got them on.

Francis had the carriage waiting when the sisters exited the house for a ride to the Exhibition. "We can go in the Elmwood Gate as it is close to the Women's Building. I want you to meet up one of my colleagues. We can then head straight for the "Lion" incubators if you like, near the Midway and the Mall." Ruby pointed to the map she had in her lap. "You don't mind the walking, do you?"

########

William completed his second round of methodically going through all the written material from Peter Lenox. The biscuits were long gone and he was thirsty. _Either I am missing something or this does not all add up._ The notes appeared to be random, the letters pedestrian business, the "evidence" not probative. He found a large set of ticket stubs for the Pan Am and set those aside until he could find a calendar and Exhibition catalogue to interpret them better.

He looked for codes, clues buried in other innocuous correspondence, pin holes in the maps, invisible writing and impressions from other correspondence, and shuffled the names and dates until he was more confused than ever, but nothing explanatory emerged. His portable microscope produced nothing. The smaller alternative light source device proved inconclusive in uncovering anything of value. The correspondence in French seemed to be a small newspaper article about anarchists from a French Daily and letters Mr Lenox was exchanging with a lover, which while explicit in content, did not reveal anything between the lines, so to speak. Nothing leaped out at him from the Reading Room guest register, but he would have to ask Ettie or Meyers to have a look at the names, if they meant anything to either of them. He also wanted to know more about the diplomatic pouches and that "Dominion of Canada" train he got shanghaied on.

Mr Lenox's bank account was healthy, but William assumed it was a fund for the investigation, and would have to ask Meyers more about that angle. Normally he would look for finger marks, but as he had no exemplars for Mr Lenox it seemed to be unhelpful. He even went back and smelled each piece of paper, but discerned nothing except a faint smell of tobacco. He arranged it all in piles, and decided to put notations on the wall to help him organize it better. Even that did not help. There was no logic and no patterns he could find.

 _For a spy, Peter Lenox was sloppy and unimaginative_ , William concluded. What was even more disturbing were the copies of correspondence he had sent to Terrance Meyers, detailing his findings and the supposed various suspicions and threats to the Exhibition he collected over he months, but William could find no evidence amongst the papers that those findings existed at all. He wondered if Meyers had already riffled through the material.

There were six photographs however, which he found intriguing, wedged between the side-folds of a box. Four were of the Pan American from an elevation, and William decided to bring them with him when he went there today to see if he could tell from where they were taken. Two others appeared to be of a generator or engine of some kind, but it was impossible to tell where they were located from the details in the picture. He supposed he should take them too. They could be souvenirs, but it was better to confirm it.

He straightened his neck and back, checked Lenox's watch and decided he had enough time to look into the other physical evidence he had gathered. He went through Lenox's wallet and examined his shoes. He tried to make sense of some bits of wire and tools the man had. Finding a jeweler's loupe, he took it back over to the papers and used that to examine more details. _Nothing._ He looked at the notations on the wall. _This is ridiculous,_ he grimaced.He got up and stretched, decided he needed to interview Mr Jackson and Mr Healy next and get ready. _This is going nowhere. I am going to have to talk with Meyers soon, because I am coming to believe there is something else going on here._


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Julia and Ruby finished exploring the Women's Building, essentially a converted country club, and walked arm in arm through the circular rose garden on the way to the Fore Court and Esplanade. While the flowers were not at their peak, the scent of the remainder was inviting none the less. They had spent a lovely 30 minutes chatting with a member of the Board of Women Managers for the Exhibition, Marian deForest, a sister-journalist and friend of Ruby's, who worked for the Buffalo Express. Julia was impressed by the wealth of knowledge her sister had in common with the other newspaper woman, and was appreciating Ruby with fresh eyes. She was therefore looking forward the invitation to tea with Miss deForest later that afternoon at her women's club.

"I wonder if Toronto will ever host an event like this," Julia asked as she surveyed the grounds. "The energy of the women of Buffalo would be an inspiration." The path opened up on an enormous Esplanade which boasted it could hold 250,000 people, larger than the entire current population of Toronto. Julia could absolutely credit the size, and is seemed at least half that many people were moving through there already this morning. She and her sister stayed to the left, touring rather garishly colored buildings-Horticulture and Graphic Arts Buildings, through the Court of Lillies to the Temple of Music. Their ultimate destination for today was the "Lion" Infant Incubator display, and the on-site hospital, past the Court of Fountains on the Midway between the Electricity and Machinery Buildings.

Ruby kept up a pleasant conversation, avoided touchy subjects between them and Julia was feeling very happy and relaxed as they walked.

They strolled towards the Mall and looked up at the Electric Tower, 391 feet in the air. Julia stared up at the structure and its decoration in the dazzling sun. Ruby nudged her. "You really have to see it at night. People come in just for that."

At the Mall they went left again, past the Machinery Building, across from the Electricity Building. Julia was torn. William had wanted to go to the Electricity Building so intently and she did not know if she should go and report back to him or if that would create jealousy that she went. It may be possible for the two of them to go together before the Exposition ended she decided, _so maybe only a quick peek on the way back to whet his appetite?_

Her destination today though, was the Incubator display. Her time in Buffalo working in Pediatrics was fulfilling in a way nothing else was, and since the invention of incubators will save countless babies, she just had to see them for herself!

############

At 11:00 am Ettie called up the stairs for "Peter" to come down, just as William was descending. "Good, there you are. It is getting late and you need to get ready." She pulled him into her boudoir and closed the door. "It will take about 20 minutes to get dressed and your whiskers on, properly this time. It takes about 10 to 15 minutes to walk to the trolley and 20 minutes to get from there to the Pan American entrance, and it will take you another 20 minutes of walking to get to the designated rendezvous point depending on the crowds. I assume you want to surveille first anyways."

William surveyed her with surprise. "Ettie, how do you know all these things? You seem to take to this spy-craft easily." He tried to look askance and failed. "Have you been reading too many novels?" _Or been listening to Meyers bloviate?_ He thought spitefully.

"Why, _Peter_ , (may I call you Peter)? Some men talk freely in front of a woman the way they would talk in front of a chair—as if there was not a brain in her head, incapable of understanding. All I have ever done is listen and keep my mouth shut."

William knew that most men underestimated women, and it was a mistake he at least seldom made. _Certainly not when the magnificent Julia was your partner._ William smiled at the thought.

Ettie was rooting around in the dressing room for men's clothing the while she was talking. "Here. This is what Peter always wore when he toured the Exposition. He went dozens of times. This suit will do." She came up with a light grey frock-coat, vest and a white shirt. The trousers were a darker grey. The boots however would not work, so he resorted to his own black half-brogues.

He talked with her about what he found, or rather did not find, in looking over Lenox's evidence. It was not as gratifying, perhaps, as going over the facts with Julia, but was a good exercise in thinking through things logically. Ettie agreed to review the names in the guestbook and arrange for Mr Healy and Mr Jackson to be interviewed, after William completed his costume.

Once fitted out with the whiskers, hair parted in the center and slicked back, with Lenox's hat and glasses, it was a most successful transformation, he confirmed, much better than his effort last night. He never wore a suit this light-colored before and disliked the style of clothing in general, so he thought it magnified the disguise. He added the watch and Lenox's billfold.

Ettie inspected him closely as she fiddled with his cravat and stick-pin. "I think it will work, at least at a distance and certainly if no one actually met Peter before. What you have to do is match his mannerisms. For instance, he always looked over his glasses—yes just like that. And mumbled a little I suppose. And he slouched…you always look like you have a ramrod up your…"

"Ettie!"

"…back. You turn on your heels like you were in the military." She moved her arms in vexation. "You are stiff, so formal much of the time. And tip your hat back—or to the side." She adjusted it to a rakish angle. "The brim on it does not have to be perfectly parallel to the floor all the time! Peter was very causal."

William thought that meant sloppy, just like Lenox's investigation. He crossed his arms over his chest in frustration.

"See, that is exactly what I mean—that is your gesture, not his-and no, don't scratch your forehead with your fingers like that…And your hands!...Not behind your back either. Peter hooked his thumbs in his vest."

When William tried that gesture, Ettie just laughed. "You'd better keep them at your sides or in your pockets for now."

He finally gave up. _I'll just pretend I am Inspector Brackenreid, minus the walking stick._ The attempt actually pleased Ettie, so that is how they left it, also minus the Yorkshireman's accent.

"Ettie, last night, how did you know it was me? What gave me away?" William was curious about that too.

She came over and pulled on his lapels, making him bend a little to hear her. "Your eyes."

# # #

Dressed as Peter Lenox, William left Ettie's Franklin Street house, walked to North St and then left down to Elmwood Avenue to pick up the 25 cent trolley car to the Exhibition grounds, north of the city, with his hands studiously in his pockets and hat askew. Ettie's admonitions about capturing Lenox's mannerisms swam in his head.

William wanted to go in by the West Amherst Gate and straight across to the Canada Building. That should give him an opportunity to check out the angles on the photographs against the taller structures. Until then, he turned his interviews with Jackson and Healy over in his mind as he traveled. Healy was as taciturn as they come and Jackson was just the opposite, but neither man offered much helpful information. Lenox had been more than cryptic—he was out and out secretive. Over all, William was as much or more frustrated with Meyers, and was hoping to confront the man soon.

He paid his 50 cent gate admission for 342 acres of Pan American Exposition, and was immediately assaulted by the noise and confusion of the crowds, intent as they were to get to the forty-plus Midway attractions. His eyes particularly roamed over families with children in tow, everybody dressed in their best outfits and full of excitement. Lenox's ticket stub collection showed that this is also where he came the most often. William bypassed all of that, walking with the mass of people flowing into the Exhibit space and towards the center of the grounds, where the Electric Tower stood. William looked longingly at the Electricity Building on his left and across to the Machinery and Transportation Building, half tempted to look around, but he knew he did not have the time and wanted to get the rendezvous over with. He secretly hoped that this meeting today would yield the information Meyers needed and that would be the end.

Taking it all in, he memorized the layout, seeking advantageous sight-lines. He had a protractor in his pocket to check angles that looked promising. The Electric Tower had stairs that allowed one to climb nearly to the pinnacle and more buildings than he had been aware of had some kind of balcony or deck for viewing. _This is going to be harder than I thought. If I was to disrupt the Exhibition, what would I do and where would I do it from? If someone was to commit a murder, how would they try to get away with it?_

He decided that was a better line of inquiry than trying to piece together anything from Lenox, and more in line with his skills as a detective. Having determined that, he was easily engrossed his observations, so engrossed he missed the progress of two particular ladies, a dozen yards to his right. A few people tipped their hat to him as he passed and he responded, not sure if they were acquainted with Lenox or just being polite. He was happy no one engaged him in conversation. Ettie had advised he try to drop his voice and make it gravelly, as Lenox had been tobacco user at one point, which might explain the smell on the papers William had examined.

William walked directly across the grounds, between the fountains and the Tower, and the Liberal Arts and Agriculture Buildings aligned on the mall, trying to slouch and shamble. His destination was the East Gate, planning to circuit the Canada Building before taking his stadium seat. The choice of site for the Canadian display was an odd one, stuck in a back corner on the path to nowhere, but he was aware that was where the Canadian Commission chose, eschewing more prominent locations that were offered. From a security point of view it has its plusses—it was the closest to any gate for entrance and exit.

The building had an observation tower of its own and looked like a half-timbered Elizabethan house, with two wings connected by a central hall, with first and second floor veranda's and arched porticos. The walls were off white, the timbers stained dark and the roof bronze-green in color. He knew inside was supposedly the largest stuffed Buffalo ( _should be called a bison,_ William corrected automatically) ever known, mounted under glass, the prized possession of the Dominion. Walking casually around the Canada building he noticed how isolated it was and considered if the location was due to a perceived threat to the Canadian delegation or to escape one directed at the larger Exhibition. The setting was as far away from the US building, and even father from the ordinance display, that was possible within the footprint of the grounds.

Finding nothing else interesting he made his way the short distance to the athletic amphitheater, through the brightly colored and impressive 2-story entrance, and handed in his ticket. He gave himself enough time to linger and observe anyone near his seat, and saw no one. Just before the start of the Game, he sat down, none the wiser for his pains at surveillance. There was no package under his seat, nothing left for him and the seats around him were sparsely filled.

The "Scottish Games" themselves were interesting. He unearthed one pleasant childhood memory of going to a set of Highland Games in Nova Scotia when he was very young, with his mother, father and baby sister. The features today were the heavy athletics. He enjoyed calculating the physics of the caber and hammer throws, and the putting-of-the-stone, typical of Caledonian contests; force, mass, and trajectory were a pleasant diversion. But his attention wandered to the Captive Balloon, just to the north, as it soared up and down above the rim of the stadium. _I was going to propose to Julia in that very balloon,_ he muttered to himself, _buy out the whole basket for just the two of us._

He had tried not to be confused and hurt when Julia distanced herself from him after her near hanging. He suppressed a shudder when he thought of how close it had come. He understood she was traumatized and needed time to heal, so he waited out the months, veering occasionally into numbness or despair. But now that he and Julia were actively courting again, William counted the time as right to become formally engaged. _I am still not going to let anything get in the way_ _this_ _time,_ he promised solemnly. He wanted to wed (and, admitted to himself, _bed_ ) her as soon as possible. He was ill-pleased with himself for becoming overly sentimental, but trusted Julia would have recalled the balloon ride she took him on to restart their relationship once before. _Maybe I can still arrange to bring her here after all._ It was almost the only thing he could think about.

With this portion of the Games over and still no contact with anyone he could discern, William lingered a bit, openly surveying the other patrons, athletes and the groundskeepers. _Just like a tourist_. He thought this whole business was a fool's errand and had no idea what to report to Meyers. He filed out with the last of the attendees, walking back behind the Canada Building to exit at the East Gate back to Delaware Avenue, developing his report in his head as he moved. He never heard the man come out of the Fire House, deftly grab him, and pull him backwards into the darkness.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Ruby ushered Julia in through the columned entrance to a cool marble foyer, both of them happy to be out of the sun beating down on Delaware Avenue. A member of the staff greeted the ladies, showing them to a small reception area where their hostess was waiting. After the sisters refreshed themselves in the cloak room, all three ascended the curved double staircase to the Court, while Miss deForest provided commentary on the Twentieth Century Club, settled among the mansions on "Millionaires Row." She noted that during the Pan Am the club opened its doors to many of the city's most celebrated visitors and tonight would be a gala ball for the Canadian delegation, in anticipation for Canada Day on July first. This afternoon the stunning light-filled atrium was set up for tea, and they were offered a table by a glass-walled library.

"You and your sister should feel right at home here, Dr Ogden. Our motto is _Facta Probant._ The club was founded as a place for women, 'not to share in current controversies, but to feed those springs of perception and that sweet reasonableness of the soul upon which the right solution of controversial questions depends.' Over tea the ladies' conversation ranged widely, but primarily focused on the macro-political landscape and experiences of the poor, particularly poor women, and the adventures of female journalists. Ruby even told a story about locating Calamity Jane in a brothel for Mrs Brake, a fellow journalist, and getting her to Cody's Wild West Show, sober and in one piece, at the Pan Am. Listening to her sister and her hostess talk about their work was eye-opening and a little thrilling. Julia thought she had not been this intellectually stimulated by the company of women in ages.

"I completely agree, Miss deForest, that we have a duty to act. Deeds do speak, just as your motto here suggests. I further believe one must act on one's conscience." She felt quite exhilarated. "I am quite motivated to increase my efforts for the benefit of us as women. If we do not act on our own behalf who will?"

After finishing their excellent tea, Ruby and Julia perused the library, examining a varied collection of first editions, literature, history and scientific journals. They took a circuit of the rest of the floor, through the grand oval ballroom being set for the night's festivities. In the rear was a walled outdoor courtyard. From the second floor, Julia gazed out over the wall. "My Goodness. I have never seen so many fine book collections. The club's library, Miss Love's, another one across the street. I missed out on most of this when I lived in Buffalo."

Ruby giggled. "Oh, yes, I imagine you missed out on quite a bit. That," she said pointing to a large brick house on the street behind, "is a lovely subscription reading room for gentleman only. It extends privileges to out of town guests of the Pan Am. I am told there are some fine first editions." Ruby bent her head close to her sister. "But the real library content is quite something more." Julia's eyebrows shot up at her sister's conspiratorial expression. "It is the city's most exclusive brothel with an extensive collection of the most scandalous pornography west of New York City."

########

The man had William by the throat, a line of wire securely around his neck pulling tighter as he struggled. He smelled hot breath as it hissed in his ear: "You are not Peter. Where the hell is he and what did you do with him?" William, dragged onto his heels and off balance, made an attempt to strike with his elbow and failed. He put his hands back on the wire trying to loosen it, scraping frantically at the other man's gloved hands and tearing his own nails in the process. He moved his head back to slam into his assailant's nose, connected with a crunch, and the grip on his windpipe gave a bit, allowing a gasp of air. William struck again and the man dropped the wire enough for the detective to get his feet under him, and pull the man forward and down. William took the wire off his neck, kicked the other man soundly and knelt on his chest, punching with his right hand until the other man put up his own hands and begged him to stop.

The fire house was dark and deserted. The whole assault took less than a minute, but William was sweating from exertion and his neck felt like it was on fire where wire rubbed the skin. He looked at his assailant and noticed he was a young man, perhaps 20 or 22 years of age and with a slight build, wearing workman's clothing of wool trousers and a dull reddish flannel shirt. That meant, in general, he was not an attendee but worked at the Exhibition. "I am going to ask the questions now. Who are you and why did you attack me?" William's voice was rough and he continued to kneel on the other man to keep him pinned.

Instead of answering any questions, the younger man repeated himself. "I want to see Peter. Who are you, and what have you done with him?"

William evaluated the circumstances and decided to give up the sham and take more control of the situation. He handed the man a handkerchief to manage a very bloody nose. "I will answer your question if you answer one of mine. How did you know I am not Peter Lenox?"

"Don't you think I would know my own brother?" The other man practically spit that out at him.

With that, William got off him, and stood up, gesturing for the other man to stay down. "Your brother? So who are you?"

"I am John Lenox. Peter is my older brother. I was supposed to meet him but I saw you instead. Who are you then? What are you doing in his clothes pretending to be him?" young John challenged.

William's gaze studied the other man intently. "I am asking the questions here. I need to see some identification." He held his hand out as John reached into his pocket and brought out a set of papers showing that John Lenox, of Fort Erie, Ontario, had permission to travel and work at the Pan American Exposition as an apprentice electrician. John also handed a photograph of himself and the real Peter, taken at the Midway. William examined the picture in the poor light, but it was easy to see a family resemblance. _I could maybe pull this off, at a distance to a casual acquaintance, but it was never going to work if anyone actually knew the man I was impersonating; for one thing, he's a good ten years younger than me._ He decided it was better to level with this young man than lie.

"I am working with the government of Canada…my name is William Murdoch and I am a detective with the Toronto Constabulary," William said as he offered John a hand up. He reached to show his badge out of habit, but just flapped his lapel in frustration. "Sorry, but I have no identification to offer you. I was asked to take your brother's place to meet a contact who would give me important information. If it was you who was to meet him, perhaps you know what the information was about?"

"Yes, I do. But now, detective Murdoch, if you are who you say you are, you answer my question. What have you done with my brother?"

William looked closely at John and straightened his back, groaning inwardly. He hated this part of his job, and tried to be gentle but direct. "I am sorry to have to be the one to tell you, Mr Lenox, but your brother, Peter Lenox, is dead."

# # #

By the time John Lenox parted company with him, William was much better enlightened than from anything he got from Terrence Meyers or Peter Lenox. He headed straight to the Canada Building, across the great hall within, past the enormous Bison under glass, and directly to a small door in the far back corner. No one stopped him and he did not bother to knock. The remains of cigar smoke told him what he needed to know. "Mister Meyers! Terrence Meyers! Come out. Now!" he yelled. He sat at a desk and started removing the whiskers. Eventually a bookcase creaked and opened, revealing the man who William had summoned.

Before Meyers could speak, William held up his hand. "Don't even start. I assume you wanted me as bait. What is really going on here?"

"Nice to see you too, Murdoch. Like to join in? We are about to interrogate the men we captured." Meyers smiled as if he was asking a Parson to tea. He motioned to the opening in the bookcase and asked the detective to follow him down.

William observed the stairs led to a series of rooms and what appeared to be tunnels branching off to the stadium, towards the East Amherst Gate and under the wall to an unknown destination. He smelled the sharp odor of sweat as he came into a small cell.

"You know Mr Clegg here, I believe," the agent making an introduction. Clegg made no moves towards friendliness. Meyers gave a sweeping gesture with his hand. "We built these with the US government as a joint operation to protect bi-national security interests. It is why the Canada Building is located where it is. As for these three," he pointed to a group of men in their 20's, dressed as laborers, "they are about to tell us what is going on, aren't you lads?" Again, Meyers looked deceptively pleasant and non-threatening. None of other men in the room bought the act.

William interrupted. "Don't bother, Meyers. These three were helping Lenox with smuggling across the border." He stared at Meyers, then Clegg and had a fresh realization. "And you already knew that." William walked up to get very close. "Meyers, we need to have a talk." With that, the detective went back upstairs to wait.

Meyers came up shortly, no longer grinning. He sat in a side chair when it was clear Murdoch was not giving up the desk. "Very good, detective. How did you figure that out?" He examined the red line on Murdoch's neck. "Nasty scrape you got there. Whisky?" He poured a drink from the bottle next to his chair. "No? I find interrogation thirsty work."

William ignored him and got to the point. "You never thought Lenox was on to any actual threat to the Canadians, or any other part of the Exhibition. You wanted to catch his smuggling cohorts. If there was any true threat, you would not have left it to Mr Lenox anyways."

"Why is that, detective?" queried Meyers.

"Because, even I have to admit you are good at your job, and you would have come to the same conclusion I did—he was sloppy but still secretive. He was feeding you false or irrelevant information to keep the money flowing and his operation going. You let him think he was going undetected when it served your purpose. Tell me, how did he die? I assume you have the autopsy results by now." William looked expectantly.

"That's classified. Let's say we are now looking into Mr Healy's situation since Lenox would have needed Healy's help with the smuggling. Used the diplomatic train and diplomatic pouches to move all kinds of things back and forth. Already got the men on our side of the border early this morning." Meyers rose to his full height in an attempt to take control of the conversation with just a little intimidation, and put is grin back on.

"I want to thank you, Murdoch, for helping out your government and the cause of justice." He checked his watch. "The diplomatic train will be going back tonight. You will need to be on it, as you have no other way to get home, seeing you have no identification to get back over the border with." He noticed Murdoch was not moving and had adopted his own false smile. Perplexed, Meyers went on. "Come now detective, this was not that bad. All in a day's work." He looked away and ran a hand over the table, seeking dust that was not there. "You even got to spend time with Miss Weston. A charming reunion with a former paramour I believe, was she not?"

William was surprised, and wondered exactly what Ettie had revealed to Meyers. He also thought, _Ah…Meyers betraying some jealousy or insecurity is he?_ So to needle him he answered: "Why, yes. Quite a…  satisfactory reunion," and watched Meyers' hand twitch involuntarily and his face fall into a blank mask. _Ettie does have that effect on men_ , he said to himself, smiling inwardly at scoring off the other man.

"But I don't think I'm going to be shut up in a freight car tonight, Mr Meyers. It turns out Lenox was on to something, he just didn't know it. There is a threat and I think I know what it is." William stood, crossed his arms on his chest and rocked a bit on the balls of his feet.

Meyers hid his irritation and took a moment to respond. "Well, well. I guess it is true that even a broken clock is right twice a day, eh, Murdoch?"

# # #

William made Meyers get out all the material that he had removed from Lenox's possession and bring it with them back to Ettie's. In the attic workroom, William looked it over while Meyers smoked and they both picked over some food Ettie sent up to them. William laid out what John Lenox told him and connected it to the evidence, now that he had all of it (or at least most of it, assuming as he did that Meyers kept some back, probably out of long years of disingenuous habit.)

"Mr John Lenox, who suspected his brother was into something shady by the way, thought the threat is to this building in the north-west corner of the Pan Am grounds, near the railroad platforms." William pointed to an Exhibition map. "John worked on the Canada Building as well as the Power House." He indicated the two structures. "The transformer in that building takes 5,000 horsepower of electricity from Niagara Falls to lower voltage for distribution around the Exhibition. He brought his suspicions to Peter Lenox, who characteristically, did not follow through, but used his meeting today with his brother to pad his resume with you, to look like he was actually doing something. That is why John Lenox wanted to see him again today and arranged to meet at the arena, to tell him more information and try to get him to act. He knew his brother was an agent and had some ability to intervene or investigate. He wanted to meet up on the sly, because he was concerned he would be discovered himself." William stood up. "Disrupting or destroying the transformers alone or in combination of destroying them and taking out a set of rail cars, or the Midway would be devastating."

"To what end, Murdoch, other than just disrupting the Exhibition?" Meyers poured over the map.

William considered before answering. "I guess it would depend on who was in the train car or who was in the Midway at the time, if the goal is to maim or kill. Random acts of violence by anarchists? A more targeted attack? Who would be injured on Canada Day? Diplomats? A member of the royal family? Maybe just turning the lights off or having an "accident" involving electricity furthers some financial gain to someone who is betting against electricity. His brother, John, figured it out by being curious about things that did not fit and people that did not belong, and finding photographs of the transformers. You should consider hiring him on—he will be a much better fit for your needs. A bright young man. Strong too." William touched his neck, having confessed only part of his encounter with John to Meyers, but the agent probably guessed the rest.

"You should have detained him, Murdoch."

"You are the one that left me with no identification, Meyers. You would be wise to look after John. Here is the picture of him and his brother, and contact information at his boarding house, where he told me he would wait. These are photographs of machines I found in Peter Meyer's room. I also think you owe him an explanation for his brother's death."

Meyers pocketed the material and nodded. "Murdoch, you are more subtle than I gave you credit. The brother thought the plan was going to be put in place Sunday, so that it can be set off Monday. Why give so much time to be discovered?"

"I have no idea. John might have more information. By the way, he wants that picture of him and his brother back—it is the only one he has to remember him by. It would behoove us to examine the Power House today or tonight to start with. I assume Mr Clegg can handle that? "

"He and I have a rendezvous of sorts this evening, but I will call him now to give him warning." Meyers appeared to have made a decision. "All right, Murdoch. Having you come down proved a better idea than even I thought at first. We will see what Clegg turns up tonight and tomorrow you can come with us to catch the miscreants."

They both went downstairs and into Ettie's room where she was waiting. William decided he would pay particular attention to her, gave her his warmest smile and kissed her hand in greeting. He lounged once again in her Morris chair, as if he owned the place, just to see if he could discomfit Meyers. Ettie raised her brows at him, but went over to pat Meyers on the arm, who was clearing his throat and staring at William.

Ettie quirked her mouth. "Gentlemen, please! Enough of that. Both of you—out of here. It is nearly 4:00 pm and my doors will be opening for business." She turned towards William. "I suggest you take yourself out to dinner, or even back to the Pan Am this evening. You may also appreciate the Reading Room if you choose, or you can come into my salon and partake of the literature," she winked, "or anyone else there that takes your fancy, with my complements and the French letters are included. I'm sure you will have no trouble at all interesting any of the girls." She leered in his direction. "There have already been some inquiries about you." She saw William color and straighten up, starting to clear his own throat now.

"And you, Terry, must go get ready. We will be leaving at 9 pm sharp." She smiled at Meyers, and he reciprocated, this time the smile actually reaching his eyes. "And William, don't wait up, we will be very late."

Dismissed from her premises, the men took each other's measure in the hallway as some of the girls trailed down the stairs. William inquired, "Where are you going this evening, if I may ask?"

Meyers laughed and clapped a hand on William's shoulder. "I am escorting her just across the street as my guest to the gala ball for the Canadian delegation. Ettie's been waiting for this party all month. Love that woman's sense of humor…" They could both smile at that.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

 _Julia was in his arms again, her hair loose and soft. They were both naked, skin against skin, exchanging tender kisses and velvet caresses, the passion building exquisitely. He ran his hands delicately along her ribs, and the insides of her thighs, his lips leaving hers only to make occasional light love-bites on her neck or bosom. He heard her sigh deeply in pleasure from his touch, which redoubled his own ardor. Their tongues were exchanging strokes, when she grabbed his with her mouth and pulled hard, arching her back while digging her fingers into his backside, letting him know clearly what she wanted, her moans now even greater and more insistent._

Not quite yet _, he thought. He was first seeking to bring Julia to a penultimate awakening. He took his time, kept the sensations mounting, selecting the exact right moment of ecstasy to finally enter her for their ride to an unstoppable completion. When he knew neither of them could stand the delay a moment longer, he allowed her to guide him to her, and made his first sweet thrust, hearing the both of them cry out together in mutual, profound, need…._

William flipped over and sat bolt upright in the bed, nearly falling out, sweating and gasping. He looked around frantically. It was not Julia and he that were carrying on, but one of Ettie's girls with a customer in the adjoining room. This was the second time tonight he had incorporated those kinds of noises into his dreams, and he wondered how Mr Lenox got any sleep at all in this dressing room, as the sound carried very clearly through the walls. The first time it happened he woke up confused and very disappointed, but did not really connect it with the sounds next door, and went back to sleep. This time it was _too_ real. His heart was pounding and his unfulfilled arousal distracting. Ettie's room was more insulated, so maybe Lenox spent the nights with her, or elsewhere. _Maybe he had earplugs?_

William knew himself to be attracted to _visual_ stimuli. He had never been aware that the sounds that can accompany physical relations could have such an effect on him-even when he knew at least some of it was theatre for the egos of the men. Of course he was hardly exposed to those noises much, other than what he could not help but accidentally overhear at the logging camps or during the course of his police work, which usually only amounted to some grunting and rhythmic bumping. _These_ sounds were quite another matter.

It was hard enough getting _to_ sleep with all that commotion; he could not effectively block it out of his dreams at all. This one might have been the best (or worst, depending on his point of view) fantasy-dream he ever had. He noticed that the closer he came to actually being able to become engaged and marry Julia, his imagination got more detailed and vivid. It was as if his subconscious permitted or prohibited such thoughts depending on the circumstances. This was of a different order all together… _much_ too stimulating.

He gave up. _Sleeping_ _here_ _is impossible._ _Not if I want rest…_ _Or any shred of sanity,_ he thought. _It also now occurs to me I do not want to hear Ettie and Meyers if_ _they_ _carry on, for so many different reasons._ He got up, used the water closet and ran a washcloth over his face and neck. Gathering his things he fled to the cot in his attic workroom, hoping he could settle down and sleep there, undisturbed by sounds. _Or_ _fantasies._ _At home I could just get up and go into work and tinker with a project,_ he sighed. Tonight he hoped he could calm down by getting on his knees in prayer…s _o I will not need to go to confession…again._


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

 **Sunday 6/30/1901**

Ettie was still sound asleep when Meyers picked William up at 10:00 am Sunday morning. He was going to miss Mass, and hoped the Lord would forgive him. The irony was that, unlike Toronto, Buffalo was a most Catholic of cities and he would have had his choice of worship. The bordello was quiet and would not be open for business until much later that evening, and her girls were expected to be out of the house from at least noon until seven. Mr Jackson was cleaning up from Saturday night's revels.

William found he did not want to know where Meyers spent the night, but the other man seemed bright and chipper for having been up until about 2 or 3 am, the usual time for a grand ball to end. He himself had managed to achieve some rest after a _decade_ of the rosary (without the comfort of his actual rosary), then slept deeply, well-past his usual waking time. He still wore some of Lenox's clothes, to blend in more like an Exhibition worker, but no other disguise this time. At Meyers' suggestion he did not shave in order to look a little scruffy, and borrowed a cap with a long brim. Meyers was similarly attired. Mr Clegg, dressed today as a gentleman, was already in the carriage and the three of them discussed what needed to happen next.

Clegg announced: "We posted a loose guard, but there was nothing out of the ordinary last night. Monday's guests and itineraries are being vetted to see if there would be a target of interest. The area around the Power House tomorrow is going to be quietly cleared of traffic. Our governments decided to let them do whatever it is they want to do today and then catch them on the way out. We are not sure how wide a conspiracy this is—but since it may have involved men who work or worked at the Pan Am and potentially both US and Canadian nationals, it may be even more important to trace the conspiracy than stop the sabotage."

William blanched. "You don't actually mean you will let the sabotage happen?"

Clegg answered. "No, no. Nothing quite like that," and stared at Meyers, hard.

"Is John Lenox going to meet us?" William asked.

"Looks like he might have been involved in the smuggling. Seems to have taken a run after talking with you, Detective. Too bad you did not hold him for us. No one has seen him since he left his boarding house yesterday." Meyers told him.

"Really," William said. "I find that hard to believe. He provided the information that lead to our activities today. He did not seem to be the type to run."

"Things are not always as they seem, detective, I thought you knew that," Meyers said cryptically.

William set his jaw and snapped his head back in silence. He listened to the rest of the plan as the carriage rolled on.

########

Light streamed through several large open windows, and for a moment Julia was just a little disoriented. Her sister, Ruby, was sleeping in the next bed. _It is like being a young girl again at home_. The thought pleased her. _Coming to Buffalo was proving to be the best idea I had in a long time and cleared away a lot of my anxiety. I am going to have to thank Ruby for this._

Yesterday was exciting and she was looking forward to going back to the Pan Am again today to take in some sights Ruby highly recommended. That was only fair, since she pulled her sister into the Exhibition hospital as well as the scientific buildings, and Ruby patiently accompanied her to each and every display. The so-called "Blue Laws" that usually shut down commercial activities did not stop the Pan Am on Sundays, although there was controversy about the Midway with burlesque acts such as the "Famous Fallen Belle Follies," and particularly the "Beautiful Orient" portion, with its exotically dressed women, which were consider by some to be too risqué during the weekdays, let alone Sundays.

Miss Love, a staunch Episcopalian, expected them to accompany her to Church this morning, and Julia was not even begrudging of that. _I assume that the edifice at Trinity Church with its Tiffany and LaFarge windows, will not implode because one female non-believer sat in a pew. I am going to enjoy the music and the excellent choir. I am also going to wear my new silk knickers to church,_ and suppressed a laugh at the thought of such potential impropriety.

When Ruby awoke, the two of them got ready, chatting about plans for the day. Ruby was determined to show her sister the more earthy elements of the Pan Am. The archery display in the stadium though, was of particular interest to Julia, so they would have to take that in.

Ruby was so pleased to see her sister looking uplifted and happy for once. It devastated her that she had been on the other side of the world and unable to reach Julia during that frightening business of her husband's murder and the trial for her life. _It all went so fast._ When Ruby found out about it she had felt emotionally crushed thinking she almost lost her sister in such a horrible way. Julia still never gave many details other than that Detective Murdoch figured out how to save her. Ruby was quite surprised to learn that the detective and she were not even "unofficially" engaged, and until relatively recently spent very little time with each other, their cancelled trip to the Exhibition being one of many missed opportunities.

Ruby wondered if the pain between the lines in Julia's letters was because their relationship collapsed under the weight of events, and they were just going through the motions. Or perhaps their affair while she was married to Darcy Garland somehow doomed any future for them, regardless.

 _Julia has always taken a different approach than I have_. _She is usually so much more cautious and proper than I… Except for an adulterous affair that turned out badly,_ she mused. _I wonder, who has ultimately been happier. Her or me?_ Julia had not mentioned her detective once in the last day, seldom in her most recent letters. _I wonder if he has rejected her. I can see him being stiff and unyielding if something disturbed his moral compass._ Ruby was determined to get to the bottom of the situation one way or the other.

At precisely 10:30 am, Miss Love's entire household left for the walk to church, with Julia not worried at all about who she would meet at the service. Afterwards, Julia and Ruby would be walking over to Elmwood Avenue and taking the trolley up town to the Exhibition for the afternoon.

########

William and Meyers swept up trash by the main kitchen, close by the northern border of the Exhibition grounds, right next to the Power House. It was nearly one o'clock, and so far there was nothing interesting or suspicious happening. William wondered how they were keeping the Exhibition Police force out of the investigation. It was an elite unit, and paid the outrageous sum of $45 a week, more than two times what he himself made!

Meyers and he actually agreed on one thing: that since early on a Sunday tended to be the least crowded, then setting the sabotage into place today made sense. Monday, especially for Canada Day, would be quite congested, so while the larger number of people might obscure their activities, there would be more eyes to notice something fishy going on. The trash collected and deposited in the nearest bin, it was time to change off with another set of "work men" that were really agents, and for Meyers to check back with his superiors at the Canada Building. William tailed along, more than a little bored, and wishing he had come back to the Pan Am yesterday to tour the Electricity Building, rather than investigate the Reading Room and finding a book to enjoy.

It was the screaming that got their attention as they passed by the stadium.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

"Julia," Ruby pointed, "You have to help!" Ruby got out of her seat so her sister could get past her and down to the stadium surface and attend to the figure lying on the ground. Everyone else was going the other direction to get away from the sight, making it hard for Julia to push through the crowd. The noise that a large group of young ladies was shrieking to high Heaven did not help matters.

The first set of bales had been brought out for the archery set-up on a cart. The top level was removed, and when workmen shifted the second layer, a person fell off the cart to the ground with a hard slap. No one moved towards the man to attend to him, and then somebody in the arena yelled for a doctor. Julia got down the steps and onto the track, and came over to the body. A man tried to tell her, _"Miss, don't interfere,_ " but Julia calmly told him she was a doctor and not to move anything. It was hard to tell exactly what happened, but rigor was set and there was a great quantity of blood soaked into his shirt, now with dirt mixed into the straw from the bales. The workers hauling the cart stood behind her as she bent over the man. Another set of men running up from an under-passage beneath the seating area pushed their way through from the rear. She heard a semi-familiar voice, swearing under his breath—"Damn! It's John Lenox, isn't it?"

Julia looked up to see Terrence Meyers. The man in work clothes standing next to him, giving a rapid sign of the cross, affirmed the identification was correct while examining the corpse in front of them. He gave her no notice at all.

"Detective William Murdoch! What are you doing here?" Ruby stood with her hands on her hips and an angry expression on her face.

 _That's a good question_ , Julia thought, _although seeing him with Meyers explains a few things._ Julia stayed down just to hear the answer.

Meyers never gave him the chance. William swung around to see who had named him, when several additional men swarmed in, picked up the body and trotted off with it towards the tunnel. All the while Meyers told everyone very loudly that it was just-a-little-accident-

and-not-to-worry, the man was going to be fine and was going to hospital right away. He ordered the straw be picked up and set aside in a pile, ruining the evidentiary value.

William was swept along with the men, but Ruby grabbed his arm. "I said, what are you doing here?"

"Uh, Hello elloHeHelloMiss Ogden, I really cannot explain to you, but I am here on business and must be going. Good Day." He pulled on his cap and tried again to leave.

"Can you tell me, detective?" Julia asked sweetly as she stood. That stopped William.

"Julia? What on earth are you doing here?" He looked around, saw that Meyers and the body were nearly through to the tunnel and then pulled both Ruby and Julia along with him as fast as they could travel. "Trust me," he said to Julia. "Just come."

The two ladies and William just caught the door to the passageway before it swung shut. He led them down the stairs and through a connector to the basement of the Canada Building next door. Ruby appeared to be thrilled with the excitement. Julia was happy to see William despite the circumstances, but was going to withhold her affection until later.

William was rapidly trying to sort through explanations. He was angry and upset that John Lenox turned up dead and wanted to know why.

Meyers had the corpse on a table already when the three of them arrived to a room off the passageway. He looked at Murdoch pointedly. "This is a matter of national security, not a place to bring your date, as lovely as these ladies are. Hello, Dr Ogden. And who is it that I have the pleasure of addressing?" He said to Ruby.

Ruby, of course, answered boldly for herself. "I am Miss Ruby Ogden, Dr Ogden's sister. And you are?" She gave him her hand to kiss and he bent over it.

William thought that Meyers had the nerve to talk about involving a "date" in national affairs, but decided it was not worth the breath. Instead he pointed to him and answered Ruby. "This is Terrence Meyers," and turned to face him.

"Meyers. You were going to look out for John Lenox. How did you let this happen?" William asked in anger.

"Murdoch, we don't have enough information. I am still not so sure he wasn't involved in one thing or the other." The agent just shrugged, which infuriated William even more.

"Meyers, since Dr Ogden is here, maybe she can tell us something about John Lenox's death that will be pertinent. If you would be so kind as to assist us, Julia?" He tried smiling, but she did not smile back, he noticed.

Ruby looked from one face to the other, taking it all in, observant eyes darting all over. She was already calculating how to get a story out of this, her hands wanting to reach for pencil and paper.

Julia just took her hat off, handed it to William, who took it meekly, and she started looking at the body. She asked for help in turning him over. "Gentlemen, with a rough observation, rigor mortis has set and there is blood pooling. Cause of death would be this wound to his upper body, large, somewhat jagged and probably not from a knife. He would have bled out quickly, but no arterial blood. The body has cooled and is stiff. I would say he has been dead at least twelve to eighteen hours, although with the hot weather and insulation from the straw…that could change the calculation. It could be more. Lividity indicates he was placed there shortly after he died. I think though there should be a primary crime scene elsewhere as there was not enough blood in the straw, at least that I observed. We would need to examine the straw to be sure—however, Mr Meyers, you have rather wrecked the evidence now."

Julia turned to William and asked for his handkerchief to wipe the blood off her hands. "Gentlemen, is that enough information? If so, I'd like to wash my hands, and I would appreciate an explanation."

Meyers was impressed by Dr Ogden, and wondered, not for the first time what she found compelling about Murdoch. He was about to give her an unrevealing answer when another man came into the space and called out. "Agent Meyers! We may have something!"

He turned to Murdoch and grinned again. "You can update the ladies if you like, or come up with me to the Power House." Meyers exited and left the detective with one corpse, two women and no idea what he should say.

William therefore handed Julia back her hat and brought the sisters upstairs to the office on the main floor of the Canada Building.

"William, what are you doing here?" Julia asked when they came out of the bookcase opening.

He reached for her hand to give it a squeeze. "Julia, it is nice to see you." He thought better of trying to kiss her, especially in his unshaven state, and particularly as she did not appear to be in a good mood. _And neither am I_ , he carped to himself. _Meyers let John Lenox down and there needs to be a reckoning._

He tried to appeal to reason, hoping Julia would forgive him. "I have to go, and I think it would be better, and safer, if you left." When he could not convince them to leave the Exhibition, he asked them to wait. He promised the ladies an explanation when he came back, and extracted a reluctant agreement from them they would stay put.

# # #

William caught up with Meyers, who was peering at one of the transformers in the Power House, clearly unsure what he was looking at. Several other men stood around, workers and government agents, including Mr Clegg. Meyers pointed to the device and said, "Murdoch, tell me what you see."

William studied the machinery, mindful that is was fully powered and operational. 11,000 Volts was transmitted from Terminal House A in Buffalo to the Power useHouse on the Exhibition grounds. "How much do you need or want to know, Meyers? And you, Mr Clegg?" William answered.

"I don't need a lecture on how it functions, but can you tell what was done to it?" Meyers responded. "I need to know what it would take to sabotage this and how it was done."

William saw the workers glaring at him and wondered if they were here to help or were being no-so-subtly detained on suspicion. "You have the experts right there, ask them."

Clegg and Meyers looked at each other in some silent communication, and then Clegg said: "What Agent Meyers is saying is that we want a second, independent opinion. I suppose you are just being modest, Detective, but you understand these things at least as well as the people who invented them, and none of _them_ are available at present."

Unable to stop himself, William was very appreciative to be this close to these wonderful behemoths and itched to study them for his own edification. He began to lecture anyway as he toured the facility. "Utility transformers, regardless of size, fundamentally consist of copper wire wrapped around a metallic center or core within an insulated and protective housing." William spent some more time looking at the set of machines and the incoming and outgoing power lines.

"This set of transformers change the voltage of incoming electric power from Niagara Falls, stepping it down to 5,000 horsepower and then sending it on to the Electricity Building to another bank of transformers made by General Electric, which further reduce the voltage and distribute it throughout the Pan Am grounds. Next door houses the three water rheostats that bring up the 200,000 lightbulbs on display at night. The G.E. Electricity Building display serves as another substation for all intents and purposes."

He paused. "What someone has done here is punch a hole in some of the oil cooling systems. By allowing coolant to leak the transformers will be damaged. That can cause a short circuit. If the oil were to be ignited, there could be an explosion or fire. That will cut power to the General Electric array next door and ultimately shut off the power to the whole Pan Am."

"Why do this today? Why not just cut the power line?" asked Clegg.

William considered. "Damaging the transformers today, if the leaks were slow enough and not discovered, would be like a time-delay mechanism. The floor drains, meant to protect the transformers from flooding, would make sure the oil was not noticeable as it leaked out. Maybe the plan was for setting them on fire tomorrow? As for the power lines, they are more easily repaired or replaced, I suppose. Damaging this makes more of an impact. If the plan was an explosion it could take out the rail lines outside the walls. As it stands, the other transformers need to be closely examined to see if the coolant valves have been opened or there are other holes to leak oil. Someone will have to bypass the damaged ones. The power cannot stay steady if one transformer fails and then wrecks the next one in the series. "

"How was it done? The hole I mean?" asked Clegg.

William looked again at the gash. "I would say a large, pointed metal object, swung with some force." As he said that, he saw one of the workers flinch. "And when you find it, see if you can match it to the wound on John Lenox." He looked across to the same worker who was now trying to appear blank and casual.

Meyers noticed the detective's gaze sharpen and signaled to his men to grab the fellow, who was trying to flee at this point. After he was subdued, William motioned to Meyers to let him examine the man. In his back pockets, he found a set of leather work gloves, with rents in the backs, where his own fingers dug the furrows just yesterday. "Well, gentleman, I think we have at least one of your men—and he has John Lenox's gloves in his possession." The detective brought the gloves up to the man's face. "Would you care to explain?"

William left the interrogation to the agents to find Julia and her sister. Ruby, of course, was already listening by the Power House door, and he nearly stumbled over her on his way out.

############

Ruby was being relentless. She talked animatedly, changing her tactics like a sailor seeking the wind in a gale.

 _Ruby never lets a thing alone, does she?_ Julia commented to herself. _I suppose that is why she is good at her job._

"Detective, I don't just think you are not giving me the whole story—you are not giving me any story at all!" Ruby stated. _I am not about to take his evasions without probing back,_ she vowed. She worked on him the whole way back to the city in the carriage, and was impressed (and frustrated) at how little he was disclosing. "National security is no excuse for keeping the truth from the public—I think people have the right to know what went on here. There was a murder and Canadian agents operating in the States, you working undercover, sabotage at the Power House ... You have to understand how much I need to write about this…" Ruby appealed to William with her winningest expression.

Julia watched this exchange between William and her sister. _I am not willing to take bets on who is going to win,_ she thought. _They both make a living with interrogation & investigation_. By now, Julia had seen William conduct many interviews, but she had never witnessed Ruby going after a story before. It was also a new idea to her how much her sister and William had in common… _An unsettling idea to say the least!_

Julia smiled privately. _This contest between them is playing out much to William's discomfort._ She looked him over, and liked his rough appearance, so different than usual. She had decided to relent and show her smile to him, and he appeared relieved when she did. She did not, however, offer him any cover from Ruby's assault. When he silently appealed to her she told him simply, "You are going to have to handle this one on your own."

William hoped he appeared stoic and closed. Ruby importuning him was not the bigger problem, as he was not going to give her any more details, period. The real problem was elsewhere, and that was what was preoccupying him for the moment. _I am not looking forward to being in the same space as Ettie, Ruby_ and _Julia. Lord help me, and rescue me from this fate,_ he prayed sincerely. He had been worried what Julia was thinking. _Whenever Julia is this quiet it usually means I am in trouble… At least she finally smiled at me._

He turned to the other woman and tried again. "Miss Ogden, _Ruby_ , I cannot discuss the matter further with you, and you heard what Terrence Meyers said about all three of us being sworn to secrecy. You already know too much. He is holding me responsible for your actions since I brought you into the investigation. I would count is a great favor if you did not get me, or your sister arrested for treason." William looked at Ruby to see if that would get her attention.

"All right, I promise not to write but I still want to know what your investigation uncovered!" Ruby shot back.

William was blocking her out of his mind, absorbed now by looking at Julia across from him in the carriage. He had shifted to thinking about trying to peel Julia away and go back with her to the Exhibition tonight to see the lights. _I wonder if I can make a proposal out of that, even without a ring._ He allowed a small smile, and hoped he was being mysterious.

Julia knew Ruby was just as determined to visit Miss Weston's bordello, once she learned of the connection, and had charmed Mr Meyers into issuing an invitation. Julia thought this would prove interesting so she agreed to go along with the plan.

"William," Julia said, taking the interlude in their sparring to change the subject, "I understand the real feature Miss Weston's establishment is a trove of high-quality pornography. Have you investigated _that_ yet?"


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

The house was empty except for the four of them. Ettie was a gracious hostess, offering her room to the ladies to refresh themselves and then giving in to Ruby's request to visit her collection of illicit works while waiting for Meyers to come back. Julia put her arm through William's and steered him along also, amused at his resistance on the way.

Ettie's salon was quite impressive; Julia noticed it was graced with a full sized copy of Jean-Léon Gérôme's, _Selling Slaves in Rome,_ _as well as_ _Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe, by_ Édouard Manet and _Fête champêtre,_ currently attributed to Titian _._ The copies were well-made and elegant, and William went over to them one at a time to admire the brush strokes unselfconsciously.

Ettie brought out some books for Ruby to see, explaining about how she collected them and got them into the country with Meyers' help, bypassing customs in the same diplomatic train in which William was smuggled into the States. Julia found a collection of medical texts, sex manuals in effect, and was intrigued.

"Miss Weston, you have quite a collection here—most of these are famous and quite banned, I believe. _You have_ _Every Woman's Book_ by Richard Carlile. Ruby, have you seen this?" She brought it over to her sister. "It was written for women, so why you have it here for men to look at, Miss Weston, I cannot imagine. This book says that "every healthy woman feels the passion of love" which is very different from the prevailing notion that women only put up with sex because of the prospect of motherhood. Carlile labeled sexuality as a virtue, not a vice. He saw love as a desire for physical and sexual gratification and believed that the Christian Church encourages prostitution and self-pleasuring by discouraging sexual intercourse."

She looked at William, who had gone back to studying the paintings, rather pointedly now, she thought. Other books caught her eye and she started listing them. " _Sexual Health,_ by Henry Hanchett **.** Or _What a Young Husband Ought to Know_ bySylvanus Stall. Mrs Duffey's book, _The Relations of the Sexes_ which tries to say that conjugal activities between men and women get essentially boring quickly."

William could not help but turn around. "Julia, how is it you are so, um, informed about this?"

Before she could answer, Ruby held one up. " _Hints on Matrimony by a Practical Man_. I have heard of this one. It recommends not being too optimistic about conjugal relations, but at least asks the men to continue courting their wives right through marriage." Ruby looked at her sister and the detective and wondered once again what was going on in their relationship. In the carriage, the detective certainly looked at Julia for the briefest of moment with undisguised longing, before he shut his face into a mask.

"I have many kinds of books," Ettie said, "even novels that were at one time or other banned in some jurisdiction, or by the Catholic Church."

All three looked at William, exactly what he had been trying to ward off. He answered calmly, "I do not need to defend my faith, ladies. The Church is not infallible. I will remind you that Galileo's work was banned and then science and the Church both caught up with the times. I have never let someone else dictate my conscience, and I have actually enjoyed reading a banned book or two." He smiled directly at them and noticed this time the ladies looked away before he did. _Why is it that people assume I am a prude or naïve, just because I am a Roman Catholic, modest or respectful, have morals or observe the social conventions of a gentleman?_ At times he was quite annoyed by this, although he had to admit Julia forced him to be more open-minded as the years passed between them. He generally counted that as a good thing. 

Ettie continued her tour of the library. "There is the poetry of Walt Whitman, Mr Wilde, Mr Twain, Lord Byron, as well as books specifically designed for arousal. May I recommend

 _My Secret Life_ by "Walter", which is essentially the pornographic adventures of a young man through the sex haunts of London?" She pointed to a row of books on a shelf. " _The Perfumed Garden_ **,** the _Fortunes and misfortunes of the famous Moll Flanders…"_

Ettie reached to another shelf and handed a set of chapbooks to Ruby. "These are most popular right now."

William peered over her shoulder. "I have seen this sort of thing before. Titillating stories," he was quick to add, "mostly harmless. I encountered them on a case I worked on…"

This time Julia read the titles. " _Ida B's Delighted Dreams_ , _Julia's Joyful Belles,_ or _The Naughty Knight Nights…"_

" _Venus and Voltaire,_ what a juxtaposition! _Awesome Annie MacFanny, Beautiful Barbara's Burlesque_ …" Ruby added, as she chose one to flip through. "The alliteration must be a tip off to the contents of the books?" she guessed.

"William, you might like _Laetitia's Lovely Legs_ or _Katherine's Tiger Girls_ ," Ettie offered with a wide-eyed look.He kept his hands firmly laced behind his back.

"Oh, my," Julia and Ruby declared nearly in unison, each scanning their own pages.

Ruby said, "I am not so sure about the harmless part. This one is called the _Seven Sensual Sins_ and seems pretty explicit to me." Ruby showed her chapbook to Julia and they both read and giggled as William become more uncomfortable.He did not like the objectification of women found in most pornography, and he did not need assistance in that area: his own imagination supplied plenty of sensual fodder.

"Mine too," said Julia. "Miss Weston, do most men like this sort of thing?"

Ettie thought about it for a minute. "I think it depends on the man. I will say it is the girls who actually like the chapbooks the best." She leaned forward, eyes edging towards William. "I like a good story or two myself!" and with that all three women laughed.

He managed to interrupt long enough to invite Julia to find supper with him later, and she agreed to accompany him back to the Exhibition tonight to see the lights.

William took the opportunity and excused himself to go his room before he got roped into anything else, as Ettie and Ruby, becoming instant friends, made plans to spend the rest of the afternoon together. As he walked up the stairs, the women continued perusal of the collection and he was trying to weigh if it was better to leave them without him being there or not…


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

"Ruby, stop it! You are being unfair and you don't understand."

Julia and Ruby walked into Ettie's bedroom, frustrated with each other and continuing a discussion that was rapidly escalating into an Ogden-sister-style argument.

"You are right, I don't understand. If you love someone you want to be with them. You have a man who loves you and wants to be with you. Or don't you? What is the problem? Why not marry? Or has he decided that now you are damaged goods in some way and won't have you after all?" Ruby flung back.

Julia gasped and nearly slapped her sister. "Ruby, that's enough. I told you before when it comes to William I will not be pushed."

"Jules, you make this more complicated than it needs to be…"

"No, Ruby, you thoughtlessly simplify things. I truly loved Darcy, even if I was never passionately in love with him, and I am very sad he is dead. Dead because of William, and me. His estate is not even settled yet. James Gillies hasn't been punished yet, and I don't think I can feel safe until he's gone." Tears welled in her eyes. "You weren't there, you don't know what we went through, and I am not sure I am completely recovered from it." Julia choked, a sudden memory flashing forward. "And you may not be concerned about your own reputation but I am concerned about repairing mine and more importantly, William's."

Ruby scoffed. "Reputation? Really? That sounds pretty lame to me. You have already had a very public affair and everybody, including father by the way, assumes you are…" Ruby watched her sister's face, expecting her to blush or rage, and was quite surprised that neither happened. Instead Julia went very still, and it slowly dawned on Ruby why. "Oh, my goodness! He never did, did he?" She came around to look Julia in the face. "You never actually committed adultery. Knowing him he likely refused…" Ruby decided she was sad and disappointed for them if it was true. "William and you are still not…?" Ruby rushed on, unthinking.

"Ruby, that is private and I will not have this conversation with you," Julia nearly shouted and stood up, pacing the room frantically.

"Jules." Ruby reached out and caught her sister to stop her from moving away. "What are you really afraid of? The guilt? That after all you went through it won't have been worth it? That it will be too little, too late?"

Part of Julia's mind appreciated that she was not the only one in this very room who could function as a psychiatrist—Ruby's observations, while brutally delivered, were exceptionally on target. Julia had all of those thoughts at one time or another including fear that William no longer wanted her, or that their attraction had more to do with it being forbidden, but was not going to confirm any of that to her sister. "William has stood by me. He and I have an understanding…"

"Understanding of what? That you made a huge mistake and you both are paying a terrible price for it?"

Now Julia felt like _she_ had been slapped. "William understands, even if you don't. He respects my decision. I am not ready to marry again, I can't even consider it until more things are settled…" Julia could find no words to continue, and willed herself not to cry. She was horrified and felt guilty that any man, even if it was James Gillies, would have to die in order for her to feel secure enough in this world to marry the man she deeply loved. _That_ _Darcy_ _had to die…_

Ruby came over to her sister and put her arms around her shoulders and hugged her tenderly. "Jules. One day you will have to realize that you did nothing wrong, that you have been plaguing yourself, and punishing yourself and William unnecessarily." Julia softened into the embrace and let some tears flow.

"Ruby, you push things right over the edge, don't you?" Julia was stung by Ruby's words and struggled to absorb the truth in them, but was feeling an odd release. "I don't know what else to say….I love him so much, more than I can possibly express. But I cannot marry him, at least not right now. I don't know when I will ever be ready." She paused, unable to go on.

"Jules, do you think William will wait forever?" Ruby said into the silence.

# # #

The Gentleman in William knew that eavesdropping was impolite, improper and a violation of trust. The Detective in him kept himself planted by the open window, hearing Julia and Ruby arguing in the room below. He could not pull himself away as his stomach churned. He thought he had been accurately assessing Julia's feelings, but realized now he was mistaken.

They recently found their old working-together rhythm again; he was always happiest then, and Julia had agreed that was also true for her. Not too long ago she was laughing in his arms at the beach and playing in the water with him-his heart had never been lighter. She had blushed but was receptive to his daring suggestion about swimming sans clothing in the dark (and might have if a corpse had not interrupted the moment.) Water made the fabric of their bathing costumes cling quite closely to their anatomy and he knew they both enjoyed the effects. She had slept by the lake with him all night, side by side, talking about the constellations overhead, sharing increasingly molten kisses. _I have become a hypocrite,_ he chastised himself. _I had intoned to George about my fixation on propriety, and not 24 hours later I was about to be ripe for arrest on charges of indecency and possibly fornication!_ After that wonderful night under the stars it seemed an impediment was lifted, which started off a new round of dreams about her and a determination in him to move on towards wedding plans.

A week ago he was planning a memorable proposal of marriage. Now he was glad he never got the chance to pull it off, because she would have turned him down! Having his proposal rejected, he knew, would devastate him. _At least Julia said she loved me—that is something._ Julia had never been quite this explicit with him before about all her feelings, and that was disconcerting to say the least….as was discovering that Ruby was so perspicacious.

He was remorseful for listening in. _I am not sure what I am going to do about this, but it is proof the old adage is true: you never hear anything good by snooping on someone else's conversation._ He unconsciously straightened his shoulders and adopted as neutral an expression as he could manage, all the while feeling quite sad and unsettled. He tried to put those emotions firmly aside but could not help questioning: _I wonder how this will come back to haunt me?_


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Ettie greeted Terence Meyers with a kiss on his cheek and the five of them assembled again in her salon. William still needed to know what happened to John Lenox, and wanted to know the results of the interrogation of the saboteur. He felt Meyers owed him that much. William was surprised Meyers appeared to not mind that the ladies were going to overhear the discussion.

"I can tell you this much now, since it is all over and," nodding to Ruby Ogden, "there is no longer a shred of proof it ever happened," Meyers began. He was dressed again in his usual attire, his beaver top hat resting on a nearby table and cigar in hand. "Peter Lenox died of an aneurism, of all things. He was not assassinated or murdered. Just 'pfftt' and died." He snapped his fingers in demonstration. "Your Dr Grace helped me out with that. Very thorough. Should be proud of your protégé, Dr Ogden. Thought sending him to her made sense as I have no coroner of my own on retainer. Although sometimes I feel I need one…." he said under his breath to no one in particular.

"Anyhow," he continued, "we found out, of course, Peter Lenox was smuggling. Mostly small items, jewels, books, small art works and the like, as there is a great appetite in Buffalo for displays of wealth by the nouveau riche. There is also an appetite for drugs in the canal district, and he had a certain paramour he was supplying with his profits. Used the diplomatic pouches etcetera. His forays in to these areas brought him in better contact with possible enemies, so we left it alone. He got greedy though, and that meant his attention was not on his primary job here, which was keeping his finger on the pulse of threats to Canadian nationals. Lenox did not take his brother's worries seriously." Meyers acknowledged the detective. "Murdoch here did bring them to our attention and we have foiled sabotage that Lenox made up a story about, but that was genuine after all." Meyers looked pleased.

"And this plot?" asked Julia.

"Jubal Dunray, the saboteur, was a disaffected worker, hoping to cause trouble. Maybe some anarchist political leanings. There was never any bomb and no conspiracy to hurt anyone. He just waited until he was alone on his shift, and planned to leave at the end, go home and pretend to be surprised the next day when there was a problem. He picked today to do the damage and tomorrow for no particular reason and had regular access to the Power House by working there. John Lenox overheard him griping about work and asking questions about disabling the machines, arranged changing his shifts etcetera, and thought it was important to tell his brother, that's all." Meyers offered in explanation.

William asked, "What about John Lenox? Why did he have to die?"

"Lenox did not go right back to his boarding house after he left you, Murdoch. He wanted to finish his hours at work, we assume, so nothing would appear amiss. He confronted Dunray on the way home, ran across him completely by accident, and believing Dunray had killed his brother, they fought. Dunray killed him and hid the body in a hay cart behind one of the fire houses, not thinking it would be discovered for some time, and not realizing that cart would be repositioned the next day."

"I am guessing the weapon was one of opportunity—such as a fireman's axe?" Julia inserted.

"And he used it to put the holes in the cooling systems," added William.

"Very good, you two. Great minds think alike, eh?" Meyers placed both hands on the table with a satisfied grunt.

He brought out the photographs the detective had given him plus the ones he had held back and put them on the table. Julia reached over and thumbed through them.

Meyers continued. "Clegg and I do not believe that any of this is useful—more of the drivel Peter Lenox thought he was fooling us with." He turned to the detective. "So, Murdoch. The train car leaves at midnight or a little after. Be there so you can get back home, will you? There's a good man." Not waiting for acknowledgement, he stood. "I must go back to the Canada Building, will be there all night preparing for the celebration tomorrow. Did you know a special variance had to be secured for the RCMP and military contingent to bring their weapons across the border for the parade? Security is so tight these days…." Meyers almost seemed to wink, before he retrieved his hat and Ettie escorted him out.

When Ettie came back, Ruby asked, "So, do you think that is really it? Nothing more?"

The four of them looked at each other and Ettie answered. "Who knows? One thing I have learned from Terry, and my years of studying the male of the species," she looked at William and said, "present company excepted, is that they don't tend to tell the whole truth. Terry does say that most of what he does is chase shadows that do not amount to much, just in case one of them _does_."

She turned to Ruby. "Shall we? It is nearly three o'clock and none of the girls will be back tonight much before 7:00 or 8:00. I am thinking we will go first to that poker game I was telling you about and then over to Seneca Street."

Ruby was already on her feet. "That will be quite excellent. May I treat you to supper? I found a lovely new place…" Without further ado the two ladies gathered their things and marched back out the door, busily planning their next move.

Julia looked at William and rolled her eyes. "Gracious! What a pair they turned out to be!" She noticed William was caught between amusement and terror at the prospect of the two of them making him their topic of conversation, and she could understand why. He also looked a little subdued to her, but related that to John Lenox's unfortunate death. She picked up and examined the photographs again absentmindedly.

"It is very good to see you, Julia. I want to apologize for, well, all this…" William waved an arm to encompass the bordello, Meyers, his clothing and cancelling their trip, all at the same time, hoping he was communicating effectively. "Would you like to tell me about your time at the Exhibition and with Ruby? Where are you staying, by the way?" He reached over to take both her hands and ventured a kiss on her cheek.

"I am actually more interested in what you have been up to, William. What do you mean you have to be on a train car at midnight? Sounds mysterious. "

"Meyers…shanghaied me. I have no personal identification and it will be difficult for me to get back to Toronto over the border unless it is in a diplomatic car." He did not tell her it would be in a boxcar rather than a coach. "When will you be going back home?"

"Ruby has interviews lined up for Monday and will be working next week, so I was thinking of going back on Monday or Tuesday, and Ihave an errand to take care of," she answered. She came over and sat next to him, giving him a warm kiss. "You will need a shave before we leave for supper." The roughness of his cheeks was a new experience she thought she would like to get used to. "I take it you have not actually seen any of the Pan Am yourself?"

"No, except for the Canada Building and the arena, and of course the Power House." He sighed. "I have a programme for tonight, though. If we go see the lights, there is also music at several locations… come up with me to my room and I will find it."


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Julia entered the room in the attic space ahead of William, a little surprised by the plainness in an otherwise over-decorated house—with a simple iron bedstead, wooden chair, large table and washstand on a scrubbed wooden floor. Pegs were on the wall for clothing and extra lamps were brought in for night-time lighting. William's tools and equipment were strewn everywhere.

"What is this room?" She looked out the windows onto the lawn, and over the walled back garden of the Twentieth Century Club across the street, enjoying a cross-breeze from the three bright windows. In a very short time, he had turned it into a version of his office, with lists and notations on the wall in lieu of a chalk board and books neatly piled. It occurred to her she had never really been alone in a bedroom for any length of time with (a healthy) William before, except of course at murder scenes, and those settings were neither private nor romantic.

"It is a sick room now," he answered. "There are two up here. So the occupant has some peace and quiet to recuperate. I think it was originally servant's quarters of some kind, or a work room. " He offered her the chair, after taking a few belongings off of it, and sat on the bed.

"Why do you have this room to sleep in?" Julia had thought Ettie would have found something more comfortable for him.

He set his face before speaking. "I needed some privacy and workspace for the investigation and ….because it is quieter…I found the noises in this place…"

"Disgusting?" she guessed.

He thought he might as well be honest. _Well, semi-honest._ "Quite the opposite, in fact. I found I was getting… uncomfortable." He looked at her from under his lashes.

e

He continued when he saw her absorb his admission and took on what he hoped was a business-like manner. "While I have been in a place like this before-on official business of course, I have never spent the night. The ladies here have explained to me that their customers primarily desire their own gratification and are not as interested in their paramour's. The men however, also seem to require validation from their partners, so….they get it, even though it is not genuine."

"William, women have as much need for release and have as much sexual drive as men do—it is a myth that we do not." She had this sort of discussion with him before and he no longer reacted with dismay at her modern attitude, which gratified her.

Julia thought about her conversation with Ruby. What she did not disclose to her sister was that she longed for intimacy with William, and that desire was growing regardless of her urge, or lack thereof, for marriage. _Our recent frolic at the beach resulted in a close call as it was,_ she thought ruefully.She had been seriously thinking about becoming lovers with him, but was not sure at this point exactly what he would think about having relations before they could marry, considering everything they had been through, and what his Catholic conscience would bear.

She looked at William, aware they were totally alone and for once unlikely to be disturbed for several hours. _George Crabtree is in another country entirely!_ She smiled at her observation and came over, sat next to him, and put her hand on his face.

"William, that night so long ago now in the park…I promised you other chances for making love, and that never happened for us. I truly regret that…." She found herself blushing a little. "I told you then I did not want you to be disappointed…" She smiled again and reached for him, initiating a kiss, just like that night on the picnic blanket. At first he hesitated about responding, then deepened the contact.

When he moved from her lips and started kissing her neck she said: "We were going to have another picnic, remember? That was really a plan to make love William, soon, without shame, even then… And more recently I think we got interrupted at the beach, didn't we?… Why not make love now?"

She sighed. "We can't only live in our minds." She brought her hands around his shoulders, and then looked into his meltingly warm eyes. "However much you have wanted to, I have matched you in desire." She went back to kissing him, and felt her heart flutter.

As they were already sitting on the side of the bed, it took very little to be lying with each other in a fierce embrace. She took his unresisting right hand and guided him under her skirts, up the wide legs of her borrowed silk knickers to her warm wetness. She nearly came undone with only that, unable to stop a murmured "oh," and moaning deeply as he pressed into her. _Oh, my._ _Why ever did I tell him "no" before? I can't quite remember…._

When she could talk again she said, "William we can give and receive satisfaction without having intercourse…if that is your hesitation… Just this once, no one need ever know…" She drew in air, in concert with his rapid breathing and squirmed a little in pleasure.

Not too long ago he was shocked to see her bare legs in public; right at this moment he didn't think twice about her lack of cotton bloomers and this very intimate access. William's left arm gripped the back of her neck tighter and he started to kiss down her collar bone, feeling the liquid silk of her surrounding and pulsing over his fingers, his well-rehearsed imagination supplying the rest. _This is wonderful_ , he thought, _and madness…._ desire quickly mounting past the point of pleasure. He found his hips twitched of their own accord. He stilled his right hand from moving with great effort, just maintaining the connection. When he felt his hips demanding again and knew he was slowly losing control.

While he could still think, he evaluated what Julia's offer might mean. He worried that it was a way of making up for her reluctance to marry, and prompted by her argument with Ruby with all that entailed… _Make love just this once?_ With regret, he slowly disengaged from her, his heart hammering and body slightly tremulous. _So this is the price for eavesdropping._

"Julia—we can't, I can't…" _We are not even officially engaged,_ he complained to himself.

Julia gasped softly. "William, why not? You can't tell me you don't want to, please, it is quite plain." She stroked the hardness of him straining at his trousers, saw his pupils were black and wide.

It was his turn to take in a sharp breath, and he stopped her hand from moving but did not take it immediately away, rather enjoying the contact with only a very tiny portion of him trying hard to be ashamed of that enjoyment. Then he recalled himself, shook his head slowly, and tried to smile. _Of course I want to. I have been wanting to for so long I can't remember not wanting._ He wasn't sure if he said that out loud or not, and wasn't sure if he cared.

He took her face in his hands, running his thumbs under her jaw and fingers beside her ears. "Julia, please listen to me. I love you. I have always loved you." His voice was deep and hoarse, he noticed. "But, once we start I will not want to stop—I will not be able to stop. Ever. I know this. I think I have always known this." It did not matter that much to him anymore that others assumed they were already lovers, but his own conscience was important to him, and he wanted things to be right between them. It was unthinkable that Julia would believe this was necessary for her to do, in order to secure his affection. _If only I did not overhear…_

He caught her wide blue eyes with his. "Julia, please don't be angry. If we do as you say, it will not be what we both really want and ultimately it will not satisfy. It will be hollow, ruin what will be wonderful." He searched her face again looking for her understanding and kissed her cheek, pushing a tendril of hair behind her ear.

 _I want us to make love for the first time on our wedding night, whenever that is … Or if before then,_ another part of him hedged to himself, _at least not like this and not here,_ is what hewanted to say, but did not vocalize _._

"I want you fully and freely." He managed a half-wicked, half-pained smile to break the tension a bit. "Not hastily in a borrowed bordello bedroom in Buffalo."

Julia was amused at the alliteration, and his attempt at humor brought her back to reality as she looked around the shabby space _. Ruby is wrong,_ she thought _. Apparently he_ _can_ _wait._ She appreciated the self-discipline he was exercising, but was not at all sure if she was relieved or not. She sat up, adjusted her skirt and sighed. _I am going to have to revise my intentions._

"You are right, of course, William." She looked at him fondly, and knew now it was true. _If, no_ _when_ _, we become lovers there is no going back, and no half-measures._ "And I love you for it." She kissed him again, ran her fingers through his hair and smoothed the locks, then stood and went towards the door. "Shall we do something about our other appetites then, such as food?"

"I think that would be splendid," he said.

"Then let me get bathed and ready for a meal. I will meet you downstairs in the parlour," she said. "How about 30 minutes? And bring the programme for music tonight?"

William heaved himself up and escorted her to the door and closed it behind her. He could not bear the usually pleasurable opportunity of glimpsing her derriere as she walked away.

# # #

Julia went along the short hallway to the stairs to go down to her borrowed room, disappointed but not regretful. She felt herself throbbing where his hand had been and decided a cold bath was going to be necessary. _But I am not sure it will be sufficient,_ she thought, _considering the sensations in me at the moment. I might have to do something about this._

She had assumed (and fantasized) that intimacy with William would be incendiary, and now she was sure of that fact. There had been more true pleasure in that small moment than she had ever thought possible. _Yes indeed, William, women have needs too._ A large part of her wanted to go back up to William and ask him, no _beg_ him, to change his mind.

She shook that aside. _He accepted when I answered "no" to him before, with respect and understanding, even when it cost him. I do love him so much…I can do the same for him._ She decided that there was no point to playing with fire, as it would be cruel. _The time will be right for us soon_ , she hoped, and she went about her toilette.

# # #

William stood leaning with his forehead pressed against the door to his room for several long moments, listening to Julia's progress down the stairs, still wrapped in her scent. His resolve was attenuating with her every footfall, aching for her to return.

 _William, you are a fool … an utter, damned fool_ , he protested, grinding his teeth to suppress a groan as it sunk in. _She's not coming back._ _Something that, at this very moment, God help me, I want more than anything I ever wanted in my entire life._

Unlike last night, prayer was not going to help this time. _What possessed me to tell her "no"?_ He looked at the key in the door, deliberately thumped his forehead on the wood once more, hesitated for another moment, and then turned the key to securely lock it. Before he washed up for supper he desperately needed to take care of something he judged, from his current state, would not take very long to accomplish.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

William was in the salon, shaved and dressed in his own clothes, reading a magazine when Julia came downstairs. It took him a good deal more than 30 minutes to get ready, but during the time he also managed to stitch up his trousers well-enough to not be embarrassed and felt much better for looking like himself again. He borrowed Lenox's watch and planned to ask about locating the family of both men, to return it before he left for Toronto. His heart raced a little when he saw her, but he nearly jumped out of his skin when she came over to the table, looked at what was laying there and the first thing she said was…

"Did you satisfy yourself?" Julia asked, hands on her hips, looking at him quizzically.

"Wha…what?..." he stammered, feeling the blood suddenly congeal in his chest.

"I asked, are you satisfied now?" She walked over to him, and looked him up and down.

He could not breathe under her examination and felt himself go pale.

"Are you satisfied with Meyers' explanation?" Julia wondered what was wrong with him.

He caught himself before he could blush and coughed to hide it. "Oh…Yes, well, it fits the facts, Julia. Why, what are you thinking?"

"Oh, probably nothing." _I have been thinking about_ _you_ _, William. I want so much to talk to you about what just happened between us._ Instead she said, "What are you reading?" She saw it was the new National Geographic and commented on one of the articles. That seemed to break the remaining tension between them and they talked about it for a while before deciding on an early supper. He offered her his arm to walk the few blocks over to a bistro, with Julia describing her time with Ruby and some of the Pan Am she experienced. William admitted to her how he got imported from Toronto to Buffalo and Julia laughed so hard he had to give up being outraged at the indignity of it all.

William spent the inspector's money freely at the restaurant, adding dessert for two and wine for Julia while she gave him a detailed analysis of the infant incubators and new x-ray machine, which he found fascinating. William tried to gauge the proper tenor of their relationship from her attitude, which seemed to waver between her usual warmth and rather perfunctory and business-like. He decided it was best to reset his expectations back to (hopefully) "good friend and colleague" and bury his romantic aspirations, especially after the conversation turned very serious on the walk back to Ettie's.

"William, I want you to know I have decided something," she said, and kept walking in silence.

He saw the emotions chase across her face as she prepared to speak. He was not sure he wanted to know, but politely asked her to go on.

"I am going to witness James Gillies' execution when it is finally set." She gripped his arm tighter as she said this.

He was surprised. "Julia. I am not so sure that is a good idea. I have been required to bear witness at a hanging before as a representative of the constabulary, but it is a gruesome affair…" he let that tail off, so much unspoken.

"I am well aware of what it will be like, William….In more than one way." Her mouth went dry but she continued after a moment. "He murdered my husband, and it is my right to see justice done." She heard her voice break a little, then she put her head up and looked him in the face, mindful of the troubled expression in his brown eyes. "I don't think anything will be put in its proper place for me again until justice is served and I know he has paid for his crimes. I have to know. You understand, don't you William?" She needed him to support her in this, struggling with how to convey the depth of all she meant and felt.

He flinched inwardly when she said 'husband' and he was actually appalled that she would attend a hanging, but appreciated what seemed to be a grim determination on her part. "Yes, I think I do, Julia. It is your duty, is it not?" He understood duty, if nothing else.

"Yes, William, it is. I am quite adamant," Julia said clearly.

What William also thought he understood was that, to Julia, she was still Darcy Garland's wife, now widow, and not yet entirely free for William to have and enjoy. What happened between them earlier today was an aberration she did not want to discuss and would never be repeated. He needed to realize that and behave accordingly.

# # #

Julia and William rode the trolley up Elmwood Avenue, and got off to walk through the beautifully landscaped Lincoln Parkway Gates to view and stroll around Park Lake, mostly content to be quietly in each other's company, or listening to music from one of the nearby bandstands drifting over the evening air. They were an attractive couple, to anyone that noticed, and fit right in with other people who were walking arm in arm, as they passed lovers and families having picnics on the smooth grass. Their eventual destination was going to be the northern end of the grounds, at the Sunken Garden bandstand, to hear Julia's choice of a Ragtime performance at eight o'clock. Sunset would be at 9:00 pm and the light show was going to start about 30 minutes after that. Julia would be able to call Francis, Miss Love's driver, to bring her back to the house when the Exhibition closed for the evening.

"William, are you going to want to come back here with me for the day next week after all?" Julia asked as they passed the Electricity Building. "You wanted to come so badly, and despite being here you have seen nothing of what you really hoped to visit."

He placed his fingers on his forehead and gestured. "I don't know, Julia. My plans have gotten…altered I suppose." He suppressed a bitter frown. "I also think it might bore you to spend the day with me absorbed in there," he cocked his head to the building in question.

"I actually found it fascinating," she said. "I am sure you would understand it better than I, but there are displays of all the most recent commercially viable new technologies and working models of several kinds of generators, engines, turbines, and transformers that are in place and being used right now, including the two in Niagara Falls, and I suppose all over the world, made by Westinghouse, General Electric and more. Ruby and I talked about the impact of this kind of technology on the economics and politics in various places, especially poor and working people…"

William interrupted her. "You went in?" _And without me?_ For a moment he was intensely jealous.

"Why, yes. I thought it would whet your interest if I could tell you…. That is also why I asked you if you were satisfied with Mr Meyers' explanation. The photographs on the table…"

He walked a couple paces and stopped.

"What on earth, William?" Julia looked at him puzzled as he stood stock still, other people bumping into him.

"Julia, what about the photographs?" he asked.

"Well, anyone can now rent a camera at the gate and take pictures for the day. Then the camera is turned in and the pictures are developed and you can come back to get them the next day."

"No, Julia, what did you mean about the pictures on the table?" _I was so preoccupied with…I never looked at them all…_

"Well, they are of the various and machines and displays in the Electricity Building…" He nearly yanked her off her feet, pulling her with him, cutting her off from speaking.

"Julia, you are brilliant!" he told her as they walked. "Come with me. I think I know what was really going on and I hope we are not too late." William steered them back and to the left, towards the Agriculture Building and over to the Canada Building, working against the flow of people coming in for the evening light show.

"Why? What did I say?" She hurried along with him, caught up in his excitement and worry.

Moving too fast to hold a conversation, he gave her a terse outline of his suspicions. At the Canada Exhibit he pounded at the door and demanded admittance. A man answered, explaining it was closed for the evening and William pushed past him, dragging Julia and asking to speak with Terrence Meyers right away.

Meyers appeared in response to the commotion with Mr Clegg in the background. "What is it, detective? Just could not get enough of my company?" His mood shifted when he recognized that Murdoch was serious about something.

"It is the photographs, Meyers! John Lenox thought there a more to it than one sole saboteur, and I agree." William stared hard at Meyers to get him to understand.

Clegg cut in: "What do you mean?"

"Julia explained that the pictures are of the displays in the Electricity Building. More than the two you originally left me with. With that kind of information and details, it would be easy for anyone to sabotage a set of transformers anywhere in the world. Anyone can study the photographs they took; those picture can be anywhere is the world right now. There does not need to be a huge conspiracy. Just one man with a fire axe. That is what John Lenox was worried about, and what he believed the pictures meant. " When the other men did not react, he tried again. "You don't understand. Transformers are purpose-built, unique to each power plant or application, especially at generation sites and sub-stations. They are also uniquely vulnerable to sabotage. No one keeps 'spare' ones on hand. Electric lines can be restrung. But if a transformer is destroyed or damaged it will disrupt power for weeks or perhaps months until a replacement is built, shipped and installed."

Meyers and Clegg started talking over each other, now ignoring Julia and William. Meyers conferred with men he called into his office. The political, economic and social unrest that could be unleashed by having a community's power shut down was a very real threat that he had no trouble imagining. Meyers dispatched a man to Ettie's to get the pictures and another to open the Electricity Building and get the building manager and engineer right away. It took an hour, but eventually they came up with a list of all the displays, and all the sited and operating versions of the machines in existence. Clegg went back to the U.S. Government Building and started sending telegraphs. By nightfall, there was nothing left to do but wait.

# # #

Meyers got off the telephone and put the receiver down. He came over to William and Julia, who were waiting impatiently in the great hall of the Canada Building, and grunted. "It was as you thought, Murdoch. We caught two men in Niagara Falls at the Canadian power station transformer building, where the electricity is stepped up for long distance transmission. They did not have a fire axe, as you so charmingly put it, but were planning on busting up the cooling apparatus and setting a fire. That would have affected much more than just the Pan American."

He puffed on his cigar, noticing it had gone out, and bent to relight it. "My superiors are pleased with the day's work and I am being placed in charge of a committee that will look into the security of our public works. Not everyone is as happy with the outcome, however. General Electric and Westinghouse, for instance are blaming each other for having industrial spies and neither company wants to admit how vulnerable their equipment is."

"You have informed everyone on the list?" asked William.

Meyers paused, then spoke. "Everyone that it is in our best interests to inform, detective. The rest is…"

"Classified, yes I know, you always use that excuse, Meyers….I assume we are to pretend none of this happened and never speak of it again?" William looked at Julia then back at the agent. "I think we are done here, yes?" When Meyers just puffed away, William reached for Julia's hand and helped her rise. "Good evening, Mr Meyers. I will see you at the train."

Julia and William were finally outside, and the lights of the Pan Am at night were quite magical. At only 8 watts each, there was a soft glow, with no shadows, from two hundred thousand individual light bulbs. Julia found it to be romantic; William was taken by the technology and peered up at the stanchions to see how they were wired. Despite there being so many people on hand, it was relative quiet, most people seemingly in awe of the display that was so bright, the full moon could not compete.

The two of them had no idea what else, if anything, would be uncovered in response to the telegrams, but felt confident they did their best. The lights dimmed suddenly for a few moments, upsetting other patrons, and for a several heartbeats William and Julia looked fearfully at each other wondering if it was evidence of sabotage. Then the lighting came back up again, setting everyone to clapping, and the two of them laughed at each other's expressions.

When it came time to leave, William walked Julia to the exit and waited with her until her carriage came.

William felt compelled to leave her with a parting message and he did so with some anxiety, trying to thread the meaning just right, hoping to salvage something of their relationship. "Julia, it is always agreeable when we work together. I am always…better… with you, you know that, don't you?"

Mindful of her choice to respect William's sensibilities, she put a chaste kiss on his cheek in answer. "I feel the same about you. I will call you next week, all right?" He handed her into the carriage, asking her to pay his respects to Ruby for him and waved her off. He checked Lenox's watch and boarded the trolley downtown, in time to gather his belongings and return back to the train station to go home.

# # #

"I don't think so Meyers," William said firmly. "You just got done telling me that my work was helpful and appreciated by my government and I am guessing by others as well and that I saved you from some embarrassment. I am not going home in a freight car." He pulled his duffel and case off the floor of the boxcar and headed up the tracks to a passenger car with "Dominion of Canada" on the side. "I am going back to Toronto in this." When he said his farewells to Ettie, she had explained to him that a club car was going back tonight and it would be empty, since all the dignitaries that came south today were staying and the car was being sent back to Toronto to pick up another delegation tomorrow morning.

He handed Meyers a written receipt. "You also can reimburse me my expenses, what I lost on my arrangements for next week, my estimate of the bill for my tailor, plus $15 for two day's work, the going rate for an Exhibition police officer. And you can pay me now." The detective stood there confidently waiting.

Meyers blinked, then narrowed his eyes and seemed to study the other man more acutely. _I always thought chess was Murdoch's game, but perhaps there is more depth to him after all._ He took in a great breath and laughed mirthlessly. "You are a dark horse, Murdoch… All right, you win. Here," he rummaged in his billfold and came up with the full amount. "I suppose you are not going to make change for me?...No?" He chuckled again. "Have a good trip. We'll be in touch."

William took the money, counted it carefully, and pocketed it. He handed the Lenox's watch to Meyers. "Please see his family gets this."

Meyers took it thoughtfully in his left hand, nodded seriously, and shook Murdoch's with his right, sealing a bargain. "I will."

With that William boarded the train, settled in and started to fully relax for the first time in two days. He was going to use the trip back to get adjusted to the new reality in his relationship with Julia… _Dr Ogden…_ so that by the time he saw her again his turmoil would be well-submerged under a placid surface. _I am not certain if I will miss the dreams or not…._


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

 **Wednesday July 3, 1901**

Epilogue:

Two women walked arm and arm down the winding lane towards a pond, beautifully collared with trees. A fountain in the center created a soothing atmosphere for contemplation, blocking out noise from the nearby Exposition. The setting was serene and pastoral, most visual evidence of human habitation obscured by gentle hills and lush landscaping.

Julia spoke very softly. "Thank you for coming with me, Ruby. I do not think I could have come here on my own. And I certainly could not have come here with…well, with William."

Julia was very somber today, and to Ruby, she appeared to be barely holding on. Something had happened between Julia and the detective on Sunday that seemed to diminish some of Julia's remaining spirit. Today was all the more difficult. Wanting to reassure her sister she said, "Julia, of course I would have come. This is very important to you, and since you are my sister and very important to me, I am glad you asked me to be here for you." Ruby's heart broke for her sister's pain.

They sat at a small bench facing the fountain, looking at birds in the water, and experienced a small gust of air which tossed leaves on the trees into sighing. They were quite alone.

"Take your time, Julia, I will be here when you get back." Ruby held her sister's hand for a moment and then Julia gave a small, determined exhale and stood erect, and walked the final hundred feet.

Julia approached slowly but steadily across the grass and hesitated only briefly before stopping at her destination.

" _ **Darcy Edward Garland, MD. Beloved Son and Brother. Taken from this world too soon."**_

The mausoleum in Buffalo's Forest Lawn Cemetery was a clean-lined affair, with a bronze plaque honoring Darcy affixed to the top right corner of the front. Inside was his body, lovingly placed there by his parents, plaque bracketed by his birth and death dates; his marriage erased for all time.

 _As it should be, I suppose._ Julia found she was trembling, with tears welling in her eyes. She stood for a moment to compose herself. She had come to pay her long-delayed respects and to face Darcy, _or his ghost_ she thought, and had no idea what she really hoped to accomplish by the exercise. She decided to talk to him, honestly, like she would have to a friend, because they _had_ been friends, at least for a while.

"Darcy, I am so very sad and very sorry this happened to you. You…died because of me…because of William and me. A sick and twisted man used you for his own evil ends. You were a good man, kind and generous and did not deserve this." Julia choked back tears that refused to abate, and needed her handkerchief to blot them.

"Darcy, I genuinely did love you, and I always liked and admired you. It was my free choice to marry you and I did it, fully-intentioned to be a loyal and loving wife to you. I thought I knew what it would take to make a good life for the both of us. I tried hard to make the marriage work, but it was impossible for you to ignore my unhappiness, and for me to ignore how unhappy I made you.

"There are so many things I would have done differently, Darcy, but none are possible now and it is not right to dishonour what we did once have and did mean to each other." Julia twisted the handkerchief in her lace-gloved hands.

"I do not want to blame anyone but James Gillies – not William for being the target of his psychopathic ravings, not myself for being William's weakness, and not you for being stubborn and angry about the divorce. It is all too tragic. I am not sure I believe in heaven or that you can hear me, but if you can, then you know now that because I would not lie under oath to obtain an annulment, I had to arrange for it to look like I committed adultery to obtain a divorce that held you blameless. That only made you angry and resentful, believing you were betrayed and so you wanted to punish me. William gave you his word not to interfere in our marriage, and he never broke his promise to you. And I never sought him until you freed me to go. Gillies used all of it to his own sick ends."

Her voice quavered. "Darcy, I am going to see Gillies hang. I am going to do that as my responsibility as your wife, and my duty to you and your memory, and so that someone who loved you will witness justice for you. That is the truth. After that I am not sure what will happen, but I will always honour and remember you." Julia stopped and took in a shaky breath, tears streaming.

She placed a kiss on her fingers and then reached up to his name in bronze, and held her hand there for a moment before moving away. She found there was nothing more to say, and waited until she had cried herself out. Then she straightened her back, held her head up, and turned to find her sister.

End

# # # #

 **To the Reader: Thank you for going on the ride with me! Tell me what you liked (or didn't like.)**

 **1) The Pan American Exposition in Buffalo, Forest Lawn and Buffalo in general in 1901 was as I described, including the reputation of the canal district. I have taken liberties with a few minor things & events for the purposes of the story (The Scottish Games, however, ****were** **on that Saturday!) but the Power House, though, is a bit of a guess. And by the way, transformers have not changed much and are just as vulnerable today as in 1901.**

 **2) The Twentieth Century Club was/is as I described, but I have moved the grand oval ballroom back a few years (I believe it was not completed as it is now until after 1901).**

 **3) Ettie's Bordello house does not exist now-it is currently a parking lot for the Twentieth Century Club on Franklin Street, and you could indeed have seen that house from the ballroom.**

 **4) Miss Love (and her house) and Miss deForest are Buffalo history I appropriated for the story—who is to say they would have not actually been like that?**

 **5) Calamity Jane was in fact dug out of a brothel by a newspaper woman, Mrs Josephine Brake, for the Wild West Show at Cody's insistence.**

 **6) Thank you so much to my kind reviewers—hope you liked the small** _ **homage**_ **and a little humor.**

 **7) And finally: I never know where "T" ends and "M" begins; I beg forgiveness if I have overstepped or offended in service of the story -rg**


End file.
